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22 May 2018

Indonesian maid (FDW)

Content page - All topicsso many Bruises on my girlDomestic maid's Off dayWinter: Some employers felt Indonesian are the best compared with other nationalities. They are humans, can be good or bad just like anybody else. They have access to mobile phones and off days just like any other FDWs. It is all about luck. MOM has no guideline or any strict screening/spot check on the quality of FDWs in Spore. You paid fees to the agent to employ a FDW, train her, pay her monthly salary and living needs, easily amounting to S$1500 per month but there's no law to say FDWs have to behave well, don't argue, carry out a good FDW job as per agreement, etc. Activists felt Employers owe FDWs a great deal, felt these live-in helpers were underpaid, being conned into slavery by Employers (weird logic, how come not agents or home country recruiters?). Activists have good hearts for FDWs but not employers. They are excited to shame employers and step/stab Employers on the tiniest matter.... including something not employers' fault (we are powerless, not the decision maker but others don't care). Activists just want to portray FDWs as vulnerable so that they can look like saviours/heros!

New performance bond not necessary, MOM reiteratesOpaque manner of handling performance bond issue troubling, Straits Times, 18 May 2018It is one thing to see a growth in the number of cases of abuse against Indonesian foreign domestic workers, but quite another to ascertain if these cases are legitimate to begin with (Forfeiture of bond will be last resort; May 15).Unfortunately, it appears that the Indonesian Embassy is quick to accept the complainants' version of the story. In the light of this and based on how the terms and conditions of its performance bond contract are less than clearly defined, how can local employers of Indonesian maids be reassured that the embassy's interpretation of a breach would not be skewed in favour of its fellow nationals?

Just as local employers are free to reject the performance bond contract and hire a maid from another country, Indonesian maids are also free to decide whether they want to work here according to the terms and conditions of employment laid out by the Ministry of Manpower.I hope the Indonesian Embassy understands that the costs of insurance for the bond is beside the point. Rather, the general public here is flabbergasted by the discretionary and opaque manner in which the matter is being handled.To put things in perspective, these foreign domestic workers are employees here in Singapore, not in Indonesia, and any contract that the embassy chooses to impose on their prospective employers must adhere to Singaporean laws without exception.If embassy officials find these laws to be currently inadequate in protecting Indonesian workers, then they ought to further consult with the Singaporean authorities according to diplomatic form and protocol, instead of acting in disrespect to the laws and sovereignty of their host country.The embassy's only responsibility is to refer cases of abuse to the relevant authorities for adjudication while providing consular assistance to their fellow nationals, if need be.Toh Cheng SeongPerformance bond can hurt Indonesian maids' prospects, Straits Times, 12 May 2018The Indonesian Embassy's imposition of a performance bond is not only unnecessary but may also result in unwarranted repercussions on Indonesian foreign domestic workers.Some employers have already expressed to the Foreign Domestic Worker Association for Social Support and Training that the conditions under which the embassy may forfeit the performance bond are not clearly specified. In view of the lack of clarity, employers said that they may not renew the contract of their existing Indonesian foreign domestic workers or hire one from Indonesia.

As rightly pointed out by the Ministry of Manpower, given the strong protections already in place for foreign domestic workers, the performance bond is really not necessary (New bond for hiring Indonesian maids unnecessary, says MOM; May 9). The comprehensive set of laws and regulations, including the $5,000 security bond required by the MOM, is sufficient to guard foreign domestic workers from errant employers.Moreover, there are many non-profit organisations that offer free mediation and legal services through which foreign domestic workers and their employers can seek redress on disputes, contractual disagreements and legal issues. We urge the relevant parties involved to work on an amicable solution so that the interest of foreign domestic workers is not compromised.Seah Seng ChoonPresidentForeign Domestic Worker Association for Social Support and Training$6k bond needed for Indonesian maids from Feb 1, The New Paper, 25 Jan 2018Employers of Indonesian maids will have to spend $70 more when hiring a new helper or renewing a contract from next month. They have to make this one-off payment to an insurer for a new performance bond of $6,000 that the Indonesian Embassy is implementing from Feb 1.Employers will have to pay the full $6,000 only if they breach the terms of the employment contract issued by the embassy, for instance, by failing to pay the maid's salary on time or abusing her. When such breaches occur, the insurance company will pay the embassy first and subsequently claim the sum from the employer.A spokesman for the Indonesian Embassy told The Straits Times that the bond is to better protect Indonesian migrant workers here by ensuring employers abide by the contracts. The current contract terms include buying personal accident insurance for the helper, allowing her to practise her religion and not allowing her to clean the exterior of windows in high-rise homes.The spokesman said the contract is being reviewed and will be finalised by Feb 1. The embassy believes this new bond will not hinder the hiring of Indonesian maids, she added.An estimated 120,000 Indonesian maids work in Singapore. The embassy here is the first Indonesian embassy to impose such a bond, said the spokesman, who added that no particular case had sparked the initiative. The embassy "is constantly looking at ways to better protect its citizens", she said.The Philippine Embassy here has had a similar bond in place for more than two decades. Employers pay about $40 to an insurer if they go through a maid agency, in lieu of a $2,000 bond.Aside from the country-specific bonds, employers also have to buy insurance for the $5,000 security bond required by Singapore's Ministry of Manpower (MOM). When contacted, an MOM spokesman said the ministry is aware of the Indonesian Embassy's bond and is "seeking clarifications on the matter".Maid agents said the rule will lead to higher costs for employers. But the amount is not prohibitive, noted Singapore Accredited Employment Agencies Association president Lim Chee Chong.Orange Employment Agency owner Shirley Ng said employers would have to abide by the embassy's rules, or choose helpers of other nationalities. Ms Sheena Kanwar, executive director of migrant worker advocacy group Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics, said the move seems well-intentioned but does not help change the negative feelings some employers have towards maids. "To change the culture and attitudes of employers, we need a more sustainable measure than bonds or adding bureaucracy," she said.Some employers said it would be onerous to handle separate bond policies by both Singapore and foreign governments. "Extra cost is never welcome to employers," said housewife Beatrice Mitschke, 47, who is thinking of hiring a new Indonesian maid later this year to help with chores and care for her elderly father. Mrs Mitschke said the MOM bond already covers a "pretty comprehensive" range of issues, and suggested the two governments have a combined bond instead. Another employer, jeweller Eileen Tjandra, 48, suggested the embassy impose the bond only on employers hiring maids who are new to Singapore. "Those who have worked here before are more savvy. They know their rights and won't accept not being paid on time anyway," she said.

Maid pours hot oil over employer's teenage son, Straits Times, 15 Dec 2017A maid, angry that her employer's teenage son had scratched her face, poured hot oil from a frying pan onto him. It all started when Indonesian Sugianti, 34, who goes by one name, scolded the 14-year-old boy for spilling liquids on the floor. She claimed this had caused his 17-year-old sister to slip and fall two days earlier.Annoyed, the boy toppled a shelf containing Sugianti's personal effects over in the bedroom they shared in a Bukit Panjang flat on Feb 15. The two had a shouting match. Afraid that the maid would complain to his father about his behaviour, the victim put back her personal effects in the bedroom.Deputy Public Prosecutor Chong Kee En said Sugianti had been frying chicken wings in the kitchen around 8am that day when she continued to scold the victim. The boy reacted by covering her mouth from behind and pulling her hair to stop her from scolding him further. Shocked, Sugianti shook the frying pan a few times at him, and called him a "devil's son". He scratched her face and left.When Sugianti saw the scratch mark, she picked up the frying pan half-filled with heated oil, and challenged him to a fight. The boy, then in the toilet, shouted at her to go away. Still fuming, Sugianti lifted the frying pan and poured the hot oil onto him. The hot oil landed on his arm and leg. The boy was taken to a polyclinic the next day when his injuries did not improve. He was treated for burns on his lower limb and right forearm, and has since recovered. A police report was made.A day later, on Feb 17, Sugianti was treated at Changi General Hospital for soreness on the back of her head and a claw mark under her right eye. On Friday (Dec 15), she was sentenced to one year's jail by District Judge Hamidah Ibrahim for causing hurt to the victim. The judge agreed there were aggravating factors in the case.She told Sugianti that if she had any issues with the victim, she should take it up with his father. She said a deterrent sentence was required, noting a certain amount of malice and intention on the maid's part.Pleading for leniency, Sugianti's lawyer Nasser Ismail said his client, a divorcee with a 10-year-old daughter, had been working for the household since last October, taking care of the boy and his two sisters, as well as their ailing grandmother. He said Sugianti suffered a lot of verbal abuse from the boy, who has a violent temperament and is much bigger in size than she is.He added that Sugianti noticed a marked change in the victim's behaviour several months into her job. The boy was becoming rebellious and ill-tempered, and had scuffled with his mother, an Indonesian, who is estranged from his father and lives in Batam.Speaking to The Straits Times on Friday evening (Dec 15) at his family's three-room flat, the boy, who is now 15, recounted the incident and said he had lost his temper when the maid shouted at him. "I grabbed her face, and scratched her accidentally... But she also shouldn't have splashed the hot oil on me." The boy, who cannot be named because of a gag order, said he had a cordial relationship with the maid. They argued occasionally, but things had never gotten violent until the incident. His elder sister, a 27-year-old project controller, said: "My brother is also getting counselling to make sure he isn't traumatised by the incident and hopefully as he grows older, he will learn to manage his anger." Sugianti, whose sentence was backdated to Oct 5, could have been jailed for up to seven years and/or fined for the offence.Indonesian Maid jailed for stealing $9,400 from employer, TNP, 28 Sep 2017 An Indonesian domestic worker who withdrew a total of $9,400 from her employer's bank account using the latter's ATM card was sentenced to nine months' jail on Wednesday (Sept 27) for theft and theft as a servant.Lifi Nurfitriyah, 26, admitted to six counts of theft of the POSB ATM card and money from her employer, Madam Or Suay Muay, 72, in June 2016. A district court heard that on July 4, 2016, Madam Or found that $9,400 had been withdrawn from her bank account, after an update was done on her POSB bank book. Her suspicions fell on the maid, who had left the previous day after the end of her employment period. Madam Or made a police report. The bank's closed-circuit television footage showed Lifi withdrawing sums of $500 to $2,000 at Rivervale Plaza POSB ATM machine between June 19 and 24 that year.Lifi was arrested on July 31, 2017, when she was working for another employer in Singapore. She admitted that during her employment with Madam Or, she had taken the victim's ATM card from her wallet, without her knowledge, to make withdrawals. She had remembered Madam Or's personal identification number and was discreet in removing the ATM card from the victim's possession and placing it back in her wallet.Six other charges were taken into consideration during her sentencing. Lifi's sentence was backdated to Aug 1, 2017. She could have been jailed for up to three years and/or fined for each charge of theft. The maximum penalty for theft as a servant is seven years' jail and a fine per charge.Maid who posed with $54k worth of stolen items jailed, TNP, 8 Aug 2017An Indonesian maid stole a Chopard women's watch worth $35,000, a Celine snakeskin handbag that costs $7,500 and a pink Hermes crocodile skin wallet worth $10,000 from her employer and thought she got away with it.Then, 11 months later, she posted pictures of herself with the stolen items on Instagram while she was working for another employer in Singapore. But her previous employer, businesswoman Lisa Lee, learnt of this from her sister and informed the police.Siti Nur Sopiyati, 32, was arrested, and yesterday, she was sentenced to 12 months in jail after admitting to the theft. She also stole a black T-shirt worth $150 and a gold ring with diamonds worth $1,800 from the Nassim Hill apartment of Madam Lee, 32, some time in January last year.The prosecution officer, Assistant Superintendent Kevin Lee Ming Woei, said Siti, who worked for Madam Lee from 2013 to March last year, was cleaning the master bedroom when she stole the items from a cupboard. Together, they were worth $54,450. She hid them in her bedroom before asking another Indonesian woman to help her send them back to her country.When Madam Lee found out some of her valuables were missing in March last year, her husband called the police. He suspected that either Siti or another Indonesian maid who was also working in the household was the culprit. Nothing incriminating was found on either of them and Madam Lee did not wish to pursue the matter further so both maids were sent back to their agent and eventually returned to Indonesia.In May last year, Siti returned to work for another household. She brought the items she had stolen from Madam Lee because she wanted to use them, said ASP Lee. In November that year, she posted pictures of herself wearing the stolen items on her Instagram page. Madam Lee's sister spotted the pictures.All the stolen items have since been recovered. Madam Lee's husband Lee Wei Loon declined to comment when approached at their home yesterday. Siti's sentence was backdated to July 25. She could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined for theft as a servant.Maid robbed and terrorised man she was caring for, Straits Times, 27 Jul 2017An Indonesian maid terrorised her employer's bedridden husband by threatening to kill him if he did not reveal his ATM personal identification number (PIN). Eko Alviah, 30, who placed a pair of scissors at the neck of Mr Chew Seng Mun, also threatened to cut his nipple on Sept 23 last year.After the 60-year-old had given her a false PIN out of fear, she bound and gagged him with duct tape to prevent him from seeking help, as she knew that he could still shout and move around slowly. She also locked the bedroom door. She forced open a locked drawer in the master bedroom to look for her passport.She found a box with 25 pieces of jewellery worth a total of $2,648. She then fled from the Woodlands flat with her passport and the jewellery. She also stole $100 that was on the living room table before leaving the flat. She had been working for the household for about a year at the time. Her main duty was to take care of Mr Chew, who had Parkinson's disease and has since died.Deputy Public Prosecutor Jaime Pang said Eko went to Woodlands North Plaza and tried to withdraw money using Mr Chew's ATM card. When she could not withdraw any cash, she threw the card away. At about 11am, she boarded a ferry for Batam, Indonesia, where she sold the stolen jewellery to a makeshift stall for about $140.Meanwhile, Mr Chew's son found his father taped and bound after unlocking the bedroom door with a spare key. DPP Pang said Eko remained in Indonesia for the next seven months. In February this year, she enrolled herself at several Indonesian maid agencies, but was found to be medically unfit to work in Singapore.Two months later, she applied for a new passport and made private arrangements to work for an employer here as a maid. On May 9, she was screened at immigration when she tried to return here and was arrested. Investigations further revealed that Eko had stolen $700 from Mr Chew's wallet some time in December 2015 while he was sleeping.She spent the money on a mobile phone and other personal items. Yesterday, Eko pleaded guilty to three charges and was sentenced to 50 months in jail, plus another 12 weeks in jail in lieu of caning.DPP Pang cited numerous aggravating factors when he sought a jail term of at least four years to be imposed. District Judge Chay Yuen Fatt, who took four other charges into consideration, said he had considered in particular that Eko had preyed on someone she was supposed to care for. "She took advantage of his age, of his disability and of his vulnerability in order to commit the offences, which were highly selfish and mercenary."The robbery offence carries a mandatory minimum of six strokes of the cane on top of a jail sentence of up to 10 years. But women, as well as men above 50, cannot be caned.The judge backdated her sentence to May 11. She could have been sentenced to seven years or more for criminal intimidation, and up to seven years and/or a fine for theft as a servant.

Maid jailed four months for hurting employer's wheelchair-bound mum, TNP, 12 Jul 2017An Indonesian maid pushed her employer's elderly wheelchair-bound mother in the face and hit her on the back of her head. Her actions were caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV), which her employer had installed in the home.Imas Masripah's employer reviewed the CCTV footage on May 17 last year, when her mother, Madam Ng Poh Lin, 94, was admitted to Tan Tock Seng Hospital after she said she was feeling weak. Madam Ng was later warded for observation. The footage showed that on May 12 last year, at 6.59pm, Imas, 28, pushed Madam Ng in the face, and forcefully hit her with her hand on the back of her head, when they were in the kitchen. Madam Ng was diagnosed with lethargy, and was found to have bed sores and a bruise on her lower lip.In her statements to the police, Imas said she hit Madam Ng because she was feeling frustrated that the victim spat out the food she was feeding her, and made the floor dirty. Two other charges of using criminal force and causing hurt to Madam Ng were taken into consideration. Madam Ng died on June 10 last year due to unrelated causes.Assistant Public Prosecutor Andrew Low asked for Imas to be given at least four months' jail because she had abused her employer's trust, and hurt a vulnerable victim. Imas pleaded for a lighter sentence, saying she was sorry, felt regret for what she did, and that she will not make the same mistake again.District Judge Terence Tay sentenced her to four months' jail on Tuesday (July 11), to send a strong deterrent message. As more families rely on maids to take care of the old and young, there is a greater exposure to the risk of abuse by these helpers, the judge said. He added that vulnerable victims are not in a position to alert family members, and the crime can go undetected until there are more dire consequences.The maximum penalty for causing hurt is two years' jail and a $5,000 fine.Maid suspected of Bedok double murder arrested, admits killing employers, TNP, 29 Jun 2017The Indonesian maid who was on the run for almost a week after her elderly employers were found bound and dead in their Bedok Reservoir flat has been caught.Khasanah, 41, was arrested on Tuesday night when police in Indonesia's Jambi province raided her hotel room. Among the items found in her possession were several pieces of jewellery, watches, mobile phones, a laptop computer and cash in various currencies, Jambi police spokesman Kuswahyudi Tresnadi said yesterday. It was reported that money and valuables were missing from the home of Mr Chia Ngim Fong, 79, and his wife, Madam Chin Sek Fah, 78, when their bodies were found.Local police were tipped off on her whereabouts on Tuesday by residents in Tungkal Ilir, a rustic town located in West Tanjung Jabung regency on the east coast of central Sumatra, Mr Kuswahyudi added.Khasanah was overheard talking on the phone at an Internet cafe and saying: "How is their condition? I don't know if they died. I'm willing to repent by staying at a pesantren (Islamic boarding school)."Her phone conversation raised suspicion because Indonesian counter-terrorism police have in recent months arrested several pesantren staff and students suspected of being extremists. It was not clear who Khasanah was talking to on the phone or asking about, but when the police arrived at the Internet cafe, they found out that she had been browsing online reports on the Bedok murders, said Mr Kuswahyudi.The officers from the West Tanjung Jabung police later tracked her down at the hotel, where an employee confirmed her name was the same as that of the suspect mentioned in news reports about the case.According to Mr Kuswahyudi, Khasanah admitted to the double murder in Singapore during interrogation. Police are trying to find out if the items found in her possession belonged to Mr Chia and Madam Chin. Khasanah, who is originally from Central Java, had been working for the couple about a month. On June 21, they were found tied up and unconscious in their five-room executive flat. They were later pronounced dead. Initial reports by Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao said Khasanah might have bought a ferry ticket and fled to either Batam or Tanjung Balai in the Riau Islands, as police worked to establish her role in the deaths of her employers. Jambi province is located more than 300km away from Singapore. The Straits Times visited the couple's flat last night, but no one answered the door.Money missing from murdered couple's flat, TNP, 24 Jun 2017Money and valuables were missing from the Bedok Reservoir home of an elderly couple who were murdered on Wednesday, reported Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News.Indonesian maid Khasanah, 41, a suspect in the deaths of Mr Chia Ngim Fong, 78, and his wife Chin Sek Fah, 78, is believed to have fled to Indonesia. It is unclear if the missing items were with her when she left on a ferry from Harbourfront Centre.The bodies were found in their five-room executive flat at Block 717, Bedok Reservoir Road, by their grandson. The Straits Times understands they were found with their hands tied. Khasanah had lived with them for about a month.Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao said she had started a chicken rice stall with a friend in Jakarta after working as a maid here, but it failed and she lost money. To support her 16-year-old son, the single mother returned to Singapore to work.The police are understood to have contacted their Indonesian counterparts to assist in investigations.Read: Bedok Reservoir double murder-Maid fled, Channel News Asia, 22 Jun 2017Maid pleads guilty to ill-treating bedridden boy, 7 Mar 2017, Straits TimesFor eight minutes, an Indonesian maid continuously inserted her right hand into the mouth of a bedridden four-year-old boy to fish out a medical suction cap that had fallen in. Kusrini Caslan Arja, 37, did not stop when his face turned purple and when her hand was smeared with blood from his mouth. (Winter: Upon reading this, I don't know whether you, as a non special needs person and blessed not to be entangled in such a family, felt sad, heartache or almost in tears. If you didn't - have no empathy, I must say you're a really cruel person who have one sided love for maid, thinking she's vulnerable or shouldn't be tasked to care for special needs person.)After Kusrini pleaded guilty yesterday to ill-treating the boy in his parents' flat on Nov 23 last year, Deputy Public Prosecutor Teo Lu Ji called for an 18-month jail term, saying the child was extremely vulnerable and could not seek help. But District Judge Low Wee Ping said the prosecution's sentencing proposal was "manifestly excessive", adding that unlike those of other convicted foreign maids who had intentionally ill-treated children out of anger, Kusrini had not set out to harm the boy. (Winter: frantically trying to solve a critical problem but "unknowingly" could create a bigger one, eg death. She's lucky the boy is alive, otherwise, it would be murder. Of course, as a murderer-maid in Spore, the punishment will be greatly reduced. The activists are backing you, the law is your favour)Judge Low said she was not a trained nurse, and footage from a CCTV camera placed near the boy's bed showed that the maid was trying to get the suction cap. He added: "I'm sure (Kusrini) didn't intentionally want to do those things. She was desperately trying to pull the cap out." (Winter: who would employ a nurse as FDW? Is it cheap and workable in Spore? Is there such an affordable non live-in alternative? Do let me know if govt/MOM decided to do us such a big favour!)The boy, who cannot be named due to a court order, has type one spinal muscular atrophy and needs support ventilation and oxygen. Kusrini was hired by the boy's parents in March last year and they trained her to use a suction machine to remove phlegm from his windpipe. The machine includes a suction cap that is attached to a tube, about the size of an adult's thumb.Kusrini was told to place the suction cap only outside the boy's nose and lips. Instead of following instructions, she inserted the suction cap into the boy's mouth that morning because she felt more phlegm could be removed in less time that way. ((Winter: Some FDWs are not listening to instructions, they thought they are good, can save time or do better by not following standard protocol/training. Some FDWs felt over the moon, self-esteem/satisfaction to be able to challenge the employers' way of work/house rules.)But when she inserted her fingers into his mouth about a minute later to remove the cap, she realised it was no longer there. That was when she panicked and inserted her entire right hand into his mouth to try to retrieve it but failed. The boy's parents returned at around 7pm and did not notice anything amiss at first.But when they checked on him about two hours later, they found that his heart rate was high and the pump container of the suction machine was filled with blood. His mother opened his mouth, found the cap and removed it with a pair of tweezers. The boy was rushed to KK Women's and Children's Hospital, where cuts were discovered inside his throat. He was discharged two days later.DPP Teo said Kusrini did not call for an ambulance and her employers, but tried to cover up by saying all was fine when the boy's father called that morning. Yesterday, Judge Low turned to lawyer Mahmood Gaznavi, who was not involved in the case but present in court, and asked if he would represent Kusrini for her mitigation. The lawyer agreed. Before adjourning the case to March 23, Mr Low faulted the system for allowing maids to perform medical care even though they are untrained. He added: "We employ domestic maids to be car washers, gardeners, plumbers, nurses, when they should not. "When they do something wrong, we point fault at them." (Winter: You are blinded! Do we have option to employ nurse cum FDW? Do we have a better choice? Are we given affordable and conveniently located special needs daycare centre? No! Judge Low is being blindly righteous and unkind)For ill-treating the boy, she could be jailed for up to four years and fined up to $4,000.An Indonesian maid was arrested yesterday for the alleged murder of a 77-year-old womanStraits Times, 15 Feb 2017Police said she will be charged in court today with murder. The elderly woman, identified as Madam Tay Quee Lang, was found dead in the living room of her fifth- floor flat in Block 276, Tampines Street 22, on Monday afternoon.When The Straits Times approached Madam Tay's family members at the flat yesterday, they declined to comment. There was a wake set up at the block, but the body had not arrived.A few hours later, police were seen carrying a mannequin made out of fabric and wearing women's clothes into the home. It is believed that it was used to help re-enact what had happened. When approached, an officer said they were doing "some work", and that the family had left. Madam Tay, who had to use a wheelchair after a fall last year, lived in the flat with her husband, Mr Tan Hee Seng, who is in his 70s.Their maid was the only other person in the flat at the time of the incident. Police said they received a call for assistance at about 2.10pm on Monday. Paramedics later pronounced Madam Tay dead at the scene. The maid was seen leaving with police officers at about 6pm to assist in investigations, and Madam's Tay's body was taken away at about 7pm.Neighbours said the maid had been with the couple for about a month and was heard screaming shortly after the incident. A neighbour who lives on the same floor, engineer Ashaari Hasan Basri, told The Straits Times that he had called the police after hearing the maid's cries for help. The 28-year-old said: "She was crying and shouting 'Ah Ma' (Hokkien for grandmother) from inside the unit, so I rushed over... She looked lost and only told me that 'Ah Ma' had slashed herself with a knife."Mr Ashaari said he peered through a window of the four-room unit and saw Madam Tay slumped on a wheelchair facing him. She appeared to have a bloodied knife lodged in her throat, he added.Facebook comments:King No -- Singaporean are stupid. How you expect the Kampong girl to look after a handicapped person. They are not qualified at all. Even we without the nursing knowledge also cannot take care elderly handicapped person.

Fulcum Daniel -- Omg what did the wheelchair granny did to you? Why slit her throat? Scary sia

Lai Yin Lee -- This maid really cruel to kill the old lady in the wheelchair so ruthlessly. Her embassy will find a lawyer and claim she's of unsound mind, homesick and then claim diminished responsibility.

Ruth Soh -- Apparently it was reported that witnesses saw a knife stuck in the throat of that handicap helpless old lady. The murderer is simply evil and wrong. Feel so sorry for the granny.

Ming Meaw -- Huh....??? The article doesn't state that the helper killed the granny. No evidence was presented, only states that the helper was brought in for investigations. No doubt she is the prime suspect, but could it have been suicide? Either the article isn't complete or the headline is misleading....Why did the headlines state that she is charged in court?

Yan Surya -- I has friend,she look after ah kong, the ah kong several time tried to kill himself,whether want to jump or even take a knife,so please dont so quick to judge the maid14 hrs

Novida Wanty Panggabean -- another Indonesian maid... as an Indonesian, I have a very big concern towards this problem.. I think it's time for Singapore to ban agencies from hiring maids from Indonesia.. because I believe most of Indonesians who apply to work as maids are either those who never go to school or victims of human trafficking..

Iris Lovely Flower Where is the news of The Maid that hang herself in the employer's house that day ?? (Singapore)

Patrick Ow -- There have been many cases of maids murdering their charges, young and old. Have they ever been sentenced to death? I have never read. Expect some maid fans to speak in defense of maids again. Maid must have been depressed, missed home, employer's fault, overworked etc.. Sob ...Sob. All sympathies for the poor maids as usual . Employers are always at fault. When maids kill elderly, people will defend maids saying that they are not suitable for taking care of elderly. When they kill children, people will defend them saying that they are not suitable for taking care of children. Seriously, what are they suitable for?

Margeratta Daniel -- I agree. People are accountable for their actions. If a job is too stressful as most jobs usually are or you feel unsuitable to it, there is the option to leave for something else. It's simply a choice.

Radiant Ritz -- Flor R Contemplacion was sentenced to death for killing her Friend and the 4 year old boy her Friend was looking after in Singapore . This became a big Hoo haa with presidents writing in for clemency . Eventually she was hanged .

Patrick Ow -- Flor was different. Hers was for killing her friend who was from her country. No maids have ever been charged for killing their employers till date, be their victims young or old.5 · Yesterday at 06:10Chuan XiongChuan Xiong It's hard to imagine what maids are going through honestly whilst taking care of their employers. Be it young or old. They might have killed them out of impulse and mostly not planned. So murder may not be in question

Sam Michael Ross -- Maybe the old lady nag too much until maid cannot stand or maid will claim the she got MENTAL illness like Singaporeans!!

Patrick Ow -- Well, if they do not like their employers or job, they can always ask for a transfer or even ask to be sent home since air tickets are to be paid by employers. There is no need to kill. Maids these days are a fussy lot. While looking for a maid, I have interviewed many. Some are for good reasons such as inability to look after children, while others gave reasons like not liking to eat bread in the morning, or wanting to work in families with four or less people, living in single storeyed apartments etc. And yes, maids can ask to transfer as many times as they want while employers can only change maids less than five? times a year. Beyond that, go MOM drink coffee.And oh yes, even before I agreed to employ them, I had maids who requested if they can use MY HAND PHONE to call home with me paying for their bills, or request that I give them my wifi password as they need to check Facebook every night. The boldest I met was one who told me that she be allowed to use the hand phone as and when she wants. So yes, maids have choices. There was no need to kill.

Lo'raine Tan -- Totally agree. First week already ask for hp want to Sms or call frequently! They haven't even proved themselves. If want to leave the country to work then don't think so much! They ask for everything but performance so so. Employer have to swallow for...See more

Benjamin Lai -- Agree. They can always run away from the job if if they can't take the stress. Why kill the employer?This is why I refuse to hire a maid.

Merlion Love -- Totally agree@Patrick Ow. My family has only 3 members, living in executive flat. Gave the maid one big room n she demanded the masterbed room. Not happy with my biggest room wor.... then complain too many TOYS to clean cos I hv a toddler. Very choosy when comes to food too. Only happy with watching tv. Seriously, what's the use of them? They give me more problem instead. I gave up and look after child n housework myself.Lo'raine Tan -- Wah!! U supper 💪!! I can't cos doing rotation shift work and can't have one of us quit work. If possible I also don't want to have someone evading my privacy 😢 I really hope luck will be good wth my currently new helper.

Lynie Danid Alumbro -- wow ur helper so lucky u offer big room ...other say ask hp . but seriously f u respect each other and don't do bad thing I don't think they do bad to them also

Analyn Sucalo -- If the Ah ma got life insurance then think about it......so many employers talk too much and pretend like they are so good....maids are not the same and so employers too.,...(don't complain too much)

Lyn Ghel -- Condolence to the family,Ahma rest in peace!Im also a helper from phil i experienced working on a employer who always nag me she scold me everyday throw things on me but i didnt think that to kill or harm her instead i still show to her i still do my job properly loved her children the most i work for her 3 years and 4 months until one day i cant stand on it i ask her to sent me home,i left there happily,now thanks God im in a very good employer who treat me as a family member.To my fellow helper here we should always remember that working as a domestic helper is very exhausted stressful,me have always to be patince ,dont kill if not happy ask employer nicely to transfer or go back,no point to kill or harm anybody.Hope sooner that the truth will revealed behind killing of ahma,if this indonesia really killed ahma or she is an innocent

Kanishka Magar Shreesh -- The society has lost its humanity whether the employer nor the employees bothe the parties have lost their patience n ethics of living this is why such incidents happens

Joseph Hiew -- Should install CCTV cameras, they are not expensive, the family can all chip in.

Peter Tan -- Condolences.Credit should be given for the quick solving case it sound fishy that the maid can cry like a crocodile in distress like in tears when she was the murderer trying to convince others that she committed suicide.One problem that cannot be solved is the mental state of such maids employed,you never expect or going to know if they are some evil murderer who would snap at the slightest moment.Very sad and scary.

Julia William -- Yes ! Few days truth will come out , true enough . I may not be related to the family but I'm also saddened . This old lady shouldn't die in a very cruel state . Many times old people killed by their maids . Every time they hear voices, they are depressed , common sense if you think you cannot handle it ... just talk to your boss cannot cope up . Instead you make your life into a mess same with the family of the old lady . Every time there incident like this , the maid is depressed , posessed evil spirit . May soul of the deceased may Rest In Peace . At least they know who is the murderer.Benglay Shirley Tan -- I always have my concern over the mental state of these foreign helpers. They come because of extreme poverty. Agents from home and host countries take a huge cut from them. During the initial months, they work to pay off these 2sets of agencies. I get upset with employers and agencies that charges the employer next to nothing but take a HUGE of many many months of their salary. Imagine this mix of extreme poverty, pressing immediate needs back home, work for almost no money for up to 1 year, 10 months, 9 months... And no day off. No phone connectivity with their own family for protracted periods. Multiple task in a fast paced environment. Many are pushed to the limit, many are sleep and food deprieve, no emotional outlet at all, no opportunity to socialise or be out of employers' sight for some respite. A ticking time-bomb waiting to explode. I have personally seen helpers working with me and home kept asking her to send $ home; one typhoon after another, disaster after disaster that they end up advancing salary and sitting at the end of each day in my kitchen starring blankly into space. After many such encounters, I felt I don't need to have a time bomb at home.

Jamie Baker -- Julia William , yes! i always asked my maid if she is happy or still not use to care of elderly mum of mine, cos she can always asked for transfer. As for me my elderly is just plain women n we had no maid till rite now cos of my mum is alone n not well ..,But now im a little afraid ...Finger cross hopefully my maid won't do such a miserable things!5 · Yesterday at 06:38

Julia William -- I don't think so my dear friend . The best thing we do is to pray and always ask them wether they can manage or not .im sure this will not happen all the time but the fear will always be there because of these incident.

Lai Yin Lee -- Having a maid in your home is like keeping a time bomb beside you. You are at her mercy because you don't know what she will do. Your kids are left with her and she could go bonkers out of the blue due to homesick or a letter from home asking for money.

Derek Greg Sivers -- Who wans to take care of 2 spoilt yellow scum

Patrick Ow -- Derek Greg Sivers, are you calling the victim and her aged husband ' yellow scum' ? Don't forget you will also grow old one day and become such scum yourself, whatever your colour.

Clarice Gay Gerona -- When i'm depressed with my employer the best thing i can do is take my phone and play music...thats it...or stay for a few min inside my room..

Li Feng -- This maid only worked for the family for just one month . She did not want or does not have the correct mindset for working as domestic worker . Good maids who are working hard are more cheerful . We don't kill just because our employers are nasty . This doesn't justify the maid's action. We all have good days and bad days at work .

Julia William -- I agree with you . Common sense if you think cannot cope up, just talk to the boss maybe they can find alternatives . Killing the old lady makes things worst .

Margaret Chan -- This sort of maid . The maid agent should Not have bring them in to be a maid ..THE AGENT & MOM SHOULD CHECK ALL THE MAIDS THE MAID MORE PROPERLY FROM.NOW ON W

Sook Lai Chin -- I thought as much.. No one can stabbed oneself at the throat some more she is old and frail

Hui Miao -- Employed maid to look after my complicated demantia mom😞 and ran away...... Ended up we have to put her in nursing home........ Took maid we worried this kind of things happened. Sent her to homes and we cursed by relatives 😟

To my shock when I reached home, I saw my pet Luo Han fish fried and on the dinner plate. I am angry but I cannot blame my domestic helper because maybe my instructions was not clear enough to her.Should I be upset with myself or my helper? Sigh.Zhi Chun

Dec 2016Winter: This year, there had been many cases of bad Indonesian FDWs. Many employers have a strong preference to employ Indonesian FDWs, compared to egoistic Filipinos. Humans, regardless of nationality, employer or FDW, can be blinded by greed or turned abusive. Problem with modern FDWs is that they have off days and internet access so are easily led astray, as well as be influenced to become inefficient and lousy helpers. Country-side/Village domestic helpers maybe joined you with a clean soul and mind but get easily polluted by peers and newly made friends via Facebook, etc. Modern FDWs are lonely here and just listened to whatever "music played". Nowadays, FDWs cannot differentiate what is wrong or chose to head the wrong way.... because what their friends said are right. A lot of FDWs treated some things like an entitlement, used incorrect ways to vent anger or blindly felt employers short-changed them. They have internet access yet preferred hearsays (eg human rights activists) instead of looking at the FDW standard contract online and MOM website for clarifications.Maid jailed for robbing, attacking employer's mum, Straits Times, 14 Dec 2016
An Indonesian maid robbed her employer's elderly mother of cash and jewellery totalling about $9,400 about one month into her employment, a court heard.

Yesterday, 32-year-old Jaimah Hapit Said was sentenced to 40 months in jail for robbing Madam Hwang Sai Kin, 81. She got an additional six weeks' jail in lieu of caning because women, like men above 50, cannot be caned. The minimum sentence for robbery includes six strokes of the cane.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Jaime Pang said Jaimah was alone with Madam Hwang at her Bedok house on Sept 26 when she accused the victim of disliking her, but Madam Hwang denied it. Jaimah suddenly grabbed Madam Hwang's right hand tightly and pushed her onto a bed. She sat on Madam Hwang and stuffed a towel into her mouth.

After about 10 minutes, she removed the towel but continued to restrain Madam Hwang's legs. She demanded money from Madam Hwang, who repeatedly told her she would give in to her demands.

Jaimah Hapit Said was sentenced to 40 months in jail for robbery. She got an additional six weeks' jail in lieu of caning. The minimum sentence for robbery includes six strokes of the cane.
Jaimah then told Madam Hwang to sit in a corner, and choked her. After she stopped, she told the victim to get the cash for her. Madam Hwang handed over $3,600.

When a hungry Madam Hwang asked for food, Jaimah told her to stay in the room and warned her not to shout for help. She took away the telephone in the room and Madam Hwang's cellphone. While walking to the kitchen, Jaimah adjusted the closed-circuit television camera in the living room so it could not capture her movements. She took bread and water for the victim, and also a knife from the kitchen. After giving Madam Hwang the bread and water, Jaimah pointed the knife at her and warned her not to leave the room for at least 30 minutes, threatening to stab her if she did.

DPP Pang said Jaimah ransacked the house, taking $4,580 and three bangles valued at $1,200 from a bedroom. She tried to, but could not find, her passport. She then left, but not before disconnecting the telephone lines. Jaimah was arrested three days later when she sought help from the Indonesian Embassy.

Madam Hwang was examined and found to have minor injuries to her neck and one forearm. Asked by District Judge Crystal Ong what she did with the items and cash, Jaimah said she had planned for the loot to be sent to her family through an Indonesian woman. But she claimed not to know if it had reached her family.

The judge said Jaimah had violated her employer's trust. She was meant to look after the employer's elderly mother but instead subjected her to much violence and fear. "The sentence must be severe enough so as to deter other foreign domestic workers from such an act," she added.

The maximum punishment for robbery is 10 years' jail and caning.

Maid jailed for stealing $24,000 from employer, Straits Times, 13 Dec 2016
An Indonesian maid who stole about $24,000 from her employer over five months was jailed for five months yesterday. Yati Nurmala Karjo Jumhandi, 34, who faced 10 charges of theft, pleaded guilty to three counts of stealing about $12,500 from Mr Nallatamby Kunaratnam, 87, in Kingsmead Road .

The court heard that sometime in August, Yati entered Mr Kunaratnam's room and found a cabinet unlocked. She took $2,500. She stole from the cabinet two other times - taking $4,000 in September, and $1,500, US$3,000 and £105 - a total of $5,966 - on Nov 6.

She sent home some money and spent the remainder on herself . Mr Kunaratnam's son made a police report on Nov 26. Yati, whose sentence was backdated to Nov 28, could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined on each charge.

Winter: 她很聪明!Indonesian maid jailed 21 months for forging employer's cheques totalling $108k, Straits Times, 31 Oct 2016An Indonesian domestic worker who forged her employer's signature on 42 cheques totalling $108,315 was jailed for 21 months on Monday (Oct 31). Ai Teti, 37, pleaded guilty to 10 charges of forgery. Another 33 charges, including theft of a commemorative gold proof coin, were taken into consideration during sentencing.A district court heard that Ai Teti had worked for her employer, Madam Yong Fong Peng, 68, for 13 years. Investigations showed that sometime in May 2015, she stole a United Overseas Bank cheque book from her employer's bedroom. She then began to issue cheques to herself.She would insert her name into the payee column of the cheque, fill in the amount to be paid, and forge a signature purportedly belonging to Madam Yong, one of the authorised signatories. The other was her husband. She had referred to previous receipts and cheques that Madam Yong had signed to more accurately copy the latter's signature on the forged cheques. She encashed the forged cheques. No restitution has been made. She spent the money on gambling and has also remitted some back to Indonesia. Her offences came to light only after Madam Yong received her UOB statement on Nov 24 the same year. She noticed that there had been suspicious withdrawals over the past few months and lodged a police report the next day.Deputy Public Prosecutor Stephanie Chew Xizhi, who sought a sentence of 18 to 20 months' jail, said Ai Teti had abused the trust of her employer. She said the offences were pre-meditated; there was a significant loss of more than $100,000; and the accused should not be categorised as a first-time offender.Pleading for leniency, Ai Teti promised not to commit any offence in future, and said she wished to go home as soon as possible. Her sentence was backdated to Oct 7. She could have been jailed for up to 15 years and fined for each count of forgery.Jailed for assaulting employer's mum, Straits Times, 6 Sep 2016 A foreign domestic worker who assaulted a sickly 96-year-old woman repeatedly was jailed for 10 months yesterday. She told police she did it out of frustration; victim was an invalid and bedridden

Indonesian Murni Panengsih, 25, admitted to five of 15 charges of causing hurt to her employer's mother, who is bedridden, has diabetes and shows signs of dementia. Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Dora Tay said the victim's daughter confronted the maid in September last year after viewing closed-circuit television footage showing the maid hitting her mother in their home in the Lavender area. She lodged a police report on Sept 18.The maid, who had worked for the family since December 2013, was reprimanded once in July 2014 for hitting the victim's head. The victim's daughter had noticed some bruises on her mother before September, and the victim mentioned "somebody was trying to kill her". But she thought her mother might have imagined things as the maid had been doing a good job of looking after the victim. She also thought the maid liked the victim.The maid told police that she had been abusing the victim since May 2014 to vent her frustration. "The accused was never ill-treated or threatened by the victim or her employers during her employment,'' said DPP Tay. On Aug 15 last year, the maid was giving the victim water when she used the water bottle to hit her lips. She held the victim's head to keep her from moving. When the victim tried to touch her injured lips, the maid flicked her hands away.Two days later, while feeding the victim, the maid suddenly grabbed her ears and head, throwing her head onto the pillow a few times. She also struck her in the face a few times. On Sept 17, she hit the victim's head repeatedly with her elbow. A minute later, she shook the victim's head and pulled her forcefully by the head.The maid's lawyer Diana Ngiam, who was assigned by Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, said psychiatrist John Bosco Lee, who assessed the maid for free, had diagnosed her with adjustment disorder and stated that her mental illness contributed significantly to her offences. She said Murni, who has a child, had a very difficult job of caring for an elderly patient with many problems. But she said that was no excuse for her to have acted the way she did. The maid also wrote a letter expressing her regret and sought forgiveness for her mistakes.District Judge Low Wee Ping said what was most disconcerting in the case was the victim's advanced age. Such elderly victims, he said, are unable to comprehend or articulate their distress when domestic workers inflict harm on them.The maid could have been jailed for up to two years and/or fined up to $5,000 per charge.Facebook comments:Lynnderella Lynn -- Jailed 10 months only?? Should add a bomb fine to it, let them regret, lose all their money instead of earn our money.. This should also be post in their country news, shame her for her acts

Chua Jiakai Jeremy -- If you want professional care, hire a professional. Even with a suitable temperament, a domestic helper is for the most part unqualified and untrained to provide professional geriatric care and negotiate the related stress pressures. It's all kinds of wrong for the domestic helper to abuse her charge, but taking care of an elderly person on a quotidian basis is also not necessarily in the scope of her work and/or part of her domain expertise. Singaporeans need to change this cheapskate mentality of having a domestic helper be the general factotum of the household and recognize that certain functions in the home require extra investment of time, money, and personal/familial involvement.

Jun Cai -- Really sad :( Poor ah ma was begging for her to stop...Jail her is nothing. She still get free food and accommodation, just can't go shopping. Cane her lah.

Sally Ong -- My heart ached when I watched the video.....a helpless frail old lady being tortured ill-treated by her maid. The 10 mths sentence is too light........

Joan Zhou -- 10 months only??!! After 10 months she can go to another place through a new agency and start bullying another poor old man/lady?? What is this 10 months to them?? They can have food without working inside the prison and "kind" people will try to help them with different ways... Is this what they deserve?? What if this is your mom? Will you still charge her for 10 months only??

Samuel Lee -- Why would we be so welcoming of a foreign stranger into our homes and lives to care for the ones we love? My Indon maid was caught spitting into my then 9 mths old baby's milk and cracking her knuckles for no reason causing her to cry. Other tell-tale signs were my girl crying when we passed her to the helper etc. We were so nice to the helper, giving her a mobile phone, access to wifi. We do not differentiate the food we eat at home and even when we go out to restaurants; we gave her a lot of free time on weekends even though it was not her off day, filled up a huge box for her to send home for Hari Raya etc.... and we never though we would be betrayed this way. I literally kicked the maid out of my house and back to haze-land (no physical violence used). Life for me and my wife without a helper is definitely tougher but seeing how our girl has grown up happier we think it's all worth it.

Steven Chia -- 10 months is too light,must be heavier,why employer ill treat maids they get heavy fine and sentence to jial,and no fine to the maidshLulu Shahirah -- What I dont understand is that this has been done repeatedly over and over and they didn't check the camera and stop her from more abuse. Poor grandma

Feby Subagan -- anger management. . .seriously if you don't like this kind of job don't apply for it...even though your employer is not good to you don't vent it out to the one you're "looking after" . . .you're supposed to "take care" of her not "beat her up" . . . remember that you too will get old and pray that you won't experience these kind of maltreatment that you did...

Yenyen Lim -- Unforgivable. Now i hope this maid goes to jail and get beaten up inside. She has been beating a helpless old lady for over long period and now pretend to be sorry and have what stupid adjustment issues. A lot of crap.

Boon Seng Tay -- Wow, really feel sad for the old lady. Hope she is fine. Most family will need domestic helper to take care of our young and old. This is the risk we take.

Flor B. Laingo -- If you cant do the job just leave! Dont mistreat someone under your care besides your working with pay. I cant imagine someone could do such to a helpless Old fellow . How sad to see this.75 · Yesterday at 20:00

Patrick Sum -- ST and 新明, really.... MUST WE circulate this footage... 1. This is a tragic isolated case, and does not reflect the many domestic helpers who do their best to care for us and our loved ones.2. Why bother w a disclaimer when we DON T HAVE TO share or repost?3. Have empathy for families like mine who are still raw recovering from or coping with caring for bed bound parents.- PLS respect the privacy of the Ah Mak and family in the the footage even as we seek justice for her. Pls exercise some journalistic decency.

Indah Chew -- I also had take care of the elderly , sick people even how difficult we take care of them coz some time the elderly behaved like small children so we must be patience n take care with our heart.treat them like own family . That not only our job but also our responsibility.

Tsui Kyit -- Wish that laws were stiffer when dealt with such unsympathetic helpers who inflict unnecessary immense pains and torment both physically and mentally on innocent victims regardless young or old who are dependent on their "help and support".Watching this short video clip is heartbreaking, felt so sorry for this frail and helpless elderlywho went through 10-months of sufferings in the hands of that evil, heartless helper.

Trevi Ng -- For those who are still siding with the maid, wait till it is your own grandma or elderly mum who is going through such torture inflicted by a sick maid. I am shocked that there are people who are sympathising with the maid instead. If she dislikes her job, she can change an employer. There was absolutely no need to torture the old lady.

Adeline Cheo -- The Judge must be blind to give her only 10months jail term. At least 3 years jail will be a fairer sentence including fine!! She should be BANNED from ever coming to Singapore to work ever again!!Imagine the helpless sufferer having to go through this trauma without her family noticing it until they finally install the CCTV. There are many others,old people who might or may have been suffering the same fate from this kind of Ruthless Indonesian maids.Why pay monies to get injuries in your own home. BEWARE IF THIS KIND OF WILL BE MURDERERS EXIST in your very own home.I wonder what the Judge feels if this VICTIM is his OWN MOTHER!

K Tan Jas -- I wonder those people who always comment about DH come to Singapore to work and say Employer Big "F" lah, DH also human lah... after seeing this, would love to hear what are their comments...

Rachael Garston -- I always thought that singapore had a tough jurisdiction system.. But lately when i read how light the sentences have been for some awful crimes.. Shocking!!

Riz Ix -- There's seriously something wrong with this gov. They protect the foreigners to a level that we could never imagine. Up till date I don't see the logic why a FDW whom wants to work in S'Pore but yet the employer has to pay for her loans...when she doesn't like working with her employer she can just say she wants to be sent back to the agency cause she knows she ain't paying for her loans...& now this...10 months not including good behavior she would be out in 6months...

Anazus Cosnan -- This maid clearly doesn't know there's a CCTV. My ex-maid very clever, she can actually switch off the CCTV. Sigh. Agency also cannot help us employers. They know these maids are problematic, but agency still have to push them out to new employers just to finish off the loans. True story.

Riah Ris -- Maids who are NOT trained to carry out such duties should not be given such tasks.If hired, employers must ensure someone trains her well, prepare her with the right knowledge and get her psychologically and emotionally prepared.If the maid is seen or deemed not fit for the job, don't let her continue doing those tasks.The training part is a killer. I know because i trained one before.And not everyone has the patience to take good care of elderly with multiple illnessIt's really not easy. But it's still the responsibility of the employers to decide if the maid is suitable for the job AFTER the training period.If all efforts done but still criminal offences like these are committed then the maid must really be given a heavy sentence.

Kenneth Tan -- So disheartening to see such thing. Hopefully she is deported and barred from entering our borders again. Adding on, "diagnosed the maid to be suffering from adjustment disorder", perhaps we should give all maids-wanna-be a thorough medical checkup for both physical and mental health. It is fortunate that her actions did not cost the life of the elderly.

Rosalind Lim -- Just wonder how many others are out there. We had an indon maid who stole fm us n ill treated my mum too. We shud hv reported her, but only sent her back as we had to send my mum to a nursing home. Everyone needs to hv home video cams if u hv a maid at home alone.

Priya Nathan -- It just hurts to see how a 96 year old who must have led a dignified life be handled so badly during her last years by this ruthless domestic helper...a strict law has to be imposed on domestic workers including the ones who are always hogging on the phones while crossing the road with a toddler/child running behind unattended...

Maureen Mok -- This is akin to almost murder .....this idiot is literally getting away scot free. Who dares to give birth and get maids in nowadays? Can MOM step in to regulate how these ppl should behave and remind them they are here to work and not to gallivant and on long holiday?

Shy Swan -- Why is there so much leniency shown towards maids & maid agencies. A crime is a crime, you have to deter maids & employers from such behaviour.The ones laughing all the way to the bank are The Maid agencies, there is no onus on them. They need to be responsible in some way when they vet candidates. The Govt should come down strong on The Maid agencies too. It's so unfair that most employers are at a receiving end. This lady has to be really cruel & heartless.

Woo Rina -- If not wrong she's compensated for that off day in monetary terms. She signed the contract and gladly took the extra pay for the off day to be taken away. So accept it! If u don't wanna accept it don't sign the contract in the first place! Not happy just leave!! If everyone goes round hitting their employers or theirs employer's kids/parents/pets etc, then what's gonna happen? I can't believe there are actually morons who speak up for this abusive maid.Mag Toh -- Regardless all these incidents caught in camera, these helpers are still protected by wise guys who do not see the poor victim asking and begging for mercy and grace from them! MOM did not involve themselves into these issues deep enough instead increasing helpers power that because a couple of them cry for attention, they are the victims. Who thinks much about those who contributed to the country and now left helpless old and poor in soul?

Shahidah Hananey -- I have had enough of my fair share of horrible helpers(ok, I know there are really good, reliable ones but I guess I was rather unlucky to have 3 terrifying helpers)! Witnessed their ill-treatments towards my small children. Had to put a stop to it. Decided to take care of the kids myself. Hence, the choice to be a WAHM

Maya Korrs -- Let us stop being so dependent on foreign domestic workers... And learn how to integrate 3 generation families across families.. Nobody needs to grow old feeling like a burden to their family that they get chucked to a foreign helper... Same for babies.. I think this country and it's people really need to take a closer look at how we live with the elderly.Chong Li Hwa -- Maid agencies should educate new maids that they must and cannot abuse or torture their elderly employers or young children. Otherwise they can be convicted and sentence to jail and cannot work in Singapore anymore. Shame on such maids. Bully the weak!

Where 10,000 maids learnt new skills, Straits Times, 18 Jul 2016Indonesian maid Asih yesterday graduated from a six-month sewing course in which she learnt how to make dresses and scarves. The 34-year-old, who goes by one name, was among 268 students to graduate from the Mujahidah Learning Centre, which celebrated its 10th anniversary since its first graduation year. "I've wanted to learn this since I was young," said Ms Asih. "But I didn't get the opportunity because I never had the money to do so."The centre was set up by the Mujahidin Mosque in 2005 to train domestic workers from Indonesia. It has subsequently attracted maids from countries such as Nepal and Sri Lanka. Starting with just 35 students, it has now trained more than 10,000. It runs five courses: English, sewing, cooking and baking, grooming and hairdressing, and computing. Students attend two-hour classes every Sunday for six months. Adviser to the centre Sarimah Talip said some workers have since returned home to set up salons and spas in places such as Bali and Batam in Indonesia. "It makes me shed tears when I hear of such examples," said Madam Sarimah. "It's good for them to attend such courses because they are working here in Singapore and can contribute postively back to their society."Feedback from employers has also been positive. The English classes, for instance, have helped maids to better communicate with their employers. In Ms Asih's case, it was her employer, Professor Jane M. Jacobs, an urban studies professor at Yale- NUS College, who paid for her course and encouraged her to learn new skills. Ms Asih started working for the family last year.Attending the classes also gives her the opportunity to socialise. "I thought she could be a bit isolated because she's the only Bahasa-speaking helper in our neighbourhood," said Prof Jacobs. "This gave her the opportunity to be connected to the community." The centre also launched a commemorative magazine yesterday to showcase the centre's progress.

Maid gets 2 years' jail for abusing 93-year-old, 14 Jul 2016, Straits TimesA maid, who slapped, kicked and shoved a 93-year-old woman she was meant to be caring for, was jailed for two years yesterday. Sulikah, 27, an Indonesian who goes by one name, pleaded guilty last month to 10 of 29 charges of causing hurt to Madam Ng Yian Yeo, who suffers from advanced dementia, between Jan 17 and Feb 10 this year.Sulikah began working for Madam Ng in February 2014 and they lived together at the latter's Ang Mo Kio flat. She admitted that she began physically abusing the victim sometime early last year, often out of frustration. She also said she was previously told off by Madam Ng's children for treating their mother roughly.On Jan 17, after Madam Ng had changed into a fresh nappy, Sulikah grabbed her by the hair and yanked her up to a sitting position on the bed. She then hit the woman's head several times, lifted her off the bed and dropped her roughly on a chair beside the bed. She then proceeded to change the sheets during which she shoved Madam Ng's head.On Jan 29, Sulikah was trying to get Madam Ng onto a rolling shower chair when she grabbed her hair and pulled her up to a sitting position, kicked her legs before lifting her and dropping her roughly on the chair. She then slapped her. On Feb 4, when the helper saw that Madam Ng's leg was not on the footrest of the chair, she kicked her legs repeatedly and hit her on the head.Three days later, when Madam Ng touched the domestic helper's hand and later gestured with her left palm, Sulikah responded by shoving her face and grabbing the back of her neck,before pushing her backwards into the chair .Deputy Public Prosecutor Kong Kuek Foo said Madam Ng's two daughters had spotted bruises on her left eye and hand when visiting her on Feb 10. They also reviewed footage from the closed-circuit television camera installed in the living room and found several occasions of physical abuse. Their brother lodged a police report the next day.District Judge Jasvender Kaur said: "The repeated acts of abuse were something of a pattern which shows a contemptible and callous disregard for the welfare of the victim." Sulikah could have been jailed for up to two years and/or fined up to $5,000 on each charge of causing hurt.Compulsory finance scheme for new Indonesian maids, Straits Times, 24 Jun 2016A new bank scheme that is compulsory for newly arriving Indonesian maids will give them greater control of their own finances, while their employers will no longer have to foot large sums of money to pay agents on their behalf.The Household Service Workers Industry Scheme (HIS) is part of the Indonesian government's efforts to improve the treatment of its citizens who work overseas as domestic workers. Details were announced by the Association of Employment Agencies (Singapore) (AEAS) yesterday. It signed an agreement with Indonesia's National Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers in February to work together on the plan.

Under the new scheme, an Indonesian domestic worker will take up a personal loan of about $1,700 from Maybank Indonesia to cover the cost of training, passport applications, medical checks and placement fees for the Indonesian agencies, AEAS president K. Jayaprema said. This currently can cost up to $3,600, and is usually paid for first by the Singapore employer. Helpers then repay them by taking a salary cut for several months.The new framework requires a domestic helper to use the finance scheme to apply for an identity card to work overseas, said Ms Jayaprema. On arriving in Singapore, her employer will credit her full salary every month into her local Maybank account, from which she will repay the loan, with interest, over eight months. She will also pay a separate service fee to the Singapore agency - which will now be capped at $1,000 - in instalments of, say, $50 a month, over 20 months. Maids must also not be charged a transfer fee if they change employers, and Indonesian domestic workers must be paid a minimum salary of $550. (Winter: goodness, Indonesian maids are not charged a transfer fee so it means Indo FDWs can fire their employers anytime they felt like doing or prefer a carefree job. Their salary is similar to Filipino FDWs, a nationality who are well known to speak better English and can eat anything - no halal restriction. Thought not long ago (May 2016), Indo wanted to stop their citizens from working overseas? So with better pay and a green light all the way to terminate employment, now they are excited and will be contented to work here?)Saying the scheme was about transparency, Ms Jayaprema said helpers would be able to take charge of their lives and manage their own finances. "Employers, too, don't need to fork out thousands of dollars for the placement fees and costs upfront."AEAS has been conducting training in recent months for local agents to learn the new scheme. Agents who have attended the day-long training course, costing $650 for association members, can apply for certification to show they are following the scheme. So far, 89 agencies have been certified, and the first workers using the bank finance scheme are scheduled to arrive here next week, said Ms Jayaprema.AEAS will also be setting up a mediation centre to oversee issues with HIS, recruitment agreements and contracts. Indonesian Embassy counsellor Didit Parlambang said he is waiting for details from the Indonesian government on the implementation of the new system. "But the goal is good, to protect the workers," he said.Facebook comments:Jess Lee -- Stamp out fake identities first... then talk about coming to sg. Haven start work lie about personal details. Dunno trust worthy or not. Dun care desperate or wat but lying to potential employer is wrong. MOM should check their identities matched instead of just checking their passport since indonesia gov corrupted.

Jess Lee -- Whoever has the power should check lar. I dun know why you can think of sending ppl there to check? And thought our 'friendly' and corrupted neighbour will help! Will it be more effective that checking starts from the agent itself and when they arrived, MOM is the one who issue work permit checked again, so if anything wrong they can denied issing work permit and agent is at onus of sending them back. And how will immigration check too since all countries rely heavily on passport for entries?

Chen Andy -- Maids get free stays and free foods , most Singaporean families also treat their maids good but they are still unhappy about it , so better be listen to the Indo government decision to stay outside also on the maids own expenses .

Deltamaris Sri Wulandari -- Thts still expensive though, i do everything by myself in indonesia without the help of any agency. I go medical n do my pasport on my own, it cost me less than $1000

See Dick San -- This is the reply to Indonesia government, they want more on their side making things difficult and complicated , this shall be what they want. Eventually, it will be them losing out , lesser indo helpers , lesser money going back into Indonesia, with that, many will only have to compete for other demand countries, same supply lesser demand. What will it be. I suppose middle east be a better choice for indo helpers.

Flo Floor -- This is a good planning. For employer like myself who only eat 1 meal per day, only person working and mum need some1 to monitor and take care just to pay up the maid loan is seriously painful for me. (3.3k of loan for my current maid). my maid off every Sunday. But then, 1.7k for training. u guys seriously train them? apparently what I notice from the my current and past maid don't even know how to do a proper mopping and sweeping the floor. They are damn freaking lazy one thing for sure. teach them what to do and they always reply I don't know. ask them to write down so that they can refer but ended up nv. only thing that came out from their mouth 'I don't know'

Siti Nor'aini A S -- they are in debt before starting working here... maybe future helpers think properly before coming over... the work load and payments may put a toll on them...

May Brathwaite -- It is a complex issues and who are going to benefit are the big players here is the Singapore and Indonesia government. Obviously the maids and their employers are the losers, right.

Connie Yu -- At least this move will make the maids feel the pinch n commitment to work. Where now they do not feel any pinch Coz they do not incur any upfront loan at all.

Longrangen Longrangen -- If we trust ppls , we can hire tham to come over our house just like other country do ( part-time care taker / house maid) to take care the children or elderly till we come back 8 hrs job of cause salary ?? Don't need hire oversea helper and fellow the their law what ever again ..🤔

Peter Tan -- Not all maids or employers are saints there will always exist one black sheep in a flock of sheep employer or the maid all are the same some are good some are bad appreciate those who are good to you just leave those who are bad alone.

Khiat Seet -- This is just one of the demands made. Honestly if it gives the helper control of her own loan and lesser for the agent, free market forces will push agents to phase out Indo helpers. Employers are fine with whatever scheme implemented in terms of the loan but the real issue at hand is the separate accomodation. It's the key factor to requiring a helper.

===========Winter: Homesick, family uncontactable, went berserk ... how come more and Indonesian maids appeared so 'weak and unfit to work"? If Indonesian govt changed its mind on stopping its female citizens to work as maids, maybe MOM should raise the minimum age requirement to 30 years old. Maids are behaving immature, easily lose control/breakdown and cause misery to ill-fated families. Also a young girl can fake to be 23 years but pretend she looked 30 years old would be harder. Read: Indonesian maid at Telok Kurau killed one, injured another, Straits Times, 9 Jun 2016Woman dead, husband injured, Indonesian maid arrested, A 23-year-old Indonesian maid was arrested on Tuesday night (June 7) after she allegedly stabbed the couple who employed her, killing a woman and leaving her husband requiring surgery for his wounds.Neighbours said they heard little until the peace of a private estate in Telok Kurau was shattered by ambulances and police cars arriving at the three-storey semi-detached house at 50C, Lorong H, where the alleged stabbings took place after 8pm.The man who was stabbed - believed to be Mr Ong Kian Soon, 57 - was eventually taken to Changi General Hospital (CGH). Police received a call about the incident at 8.48pm. When officers arrived, they discovered the motionless body of a 59-year-old woman in a toilet on the second floor.Police at Telok Kurau investigating a murder. Paramedics pronounced her dead at about 9.03pm. Police have classified the case as murder, and are investigating. The Straits Times understands that the maid had used a knife to attack her employers. It is believed that Mr Ong went upstairs after he heard a commotion in the toilet. When he opened the door, the maid charged at him with a knife and a tussle ensued. He managed to subdue the maid, who is believed to have been injured in the struggle as well.Neighbours The Straits Times spoke to appeared shocked as it dawned on them that a killing had taken place in their estate. One bystander said he saw an ambulance and four police cars leave the scene at about 9.15pm.Three Malaysians who were passing by said they heard a man cry for help and saw him running towards the front gate holding the maid. He had two wounds on his neck. The trio, who declined to be named, added that they helped to restrain her. Officers continued to gather evidence, and by 11pm, the house and a stretch of road in front of it had been cordoned off.

When The Straits Times arrived at the scene in Telok Kurau, a man was seen crying outside the house, which had a red banner and lanterns above front door. Another man asked to be left alone as he had just lost his mother. At Changi General Hospital, a nurse told family members that Mr Ong had to go for surgery, and said in Mandarin that he had "lost a lot of blood". She later told them to go home and return in the morning. She also told them: "Don't agitate him when you talk to him, if not he will bleed."Police officers had not removed the victim's body from the crime scene as of 12.30am.Facebook comments:Nikita Rizalya -- OMG again indo maid become killer what reason what happens until doing stupid things if unhappy with employer if talk very bad things plz save life coming Singapore for earn money no for killer if they are hv problem

Aline Ang -- If everybody kills each time they have some grievances there will be no one left in the world. She is an adult and should know better.

Alvin Lai -- Before the news comes out about the nationality, I already anticipate it is a Indonesian. If u guys look through the news about employer getting murder by maid, majority are Indonesian. Not to be bias when u see this type of news done by this nationality all the time. It tends to terrify u a lot. That's why I chose a Filipino maid last time even though it cost more 4 years back. And even though my maid has gone home 2 years already, we r still in contact

Rosalind Thung -- Regardless of any reason, there is no justification for murder. It is always the idea that employers ill treat these Indonesian domestic helpers that drives them to murder..so if I have a bad day at work or my boss chides me for a mistake...so do I then resort to murder? Lets face it, there have been more cases on Indonesian helpers committing murder, the recent case on a baby....our penalty in dealing with such cases are too lenient...a strong message has to be sent to these helpers, that murder equates the death penalty.

Christine Loo -- It is the mentality .. no matter how good you treat them. I had employed Indonesian maids before. In front they can be like very obedient and loyal. But you nvr know the hidden resentment or jealousy in their heart.

Iin Rohaeni -- So sad to hear that Indonesian become a killer instead of working hard, come abroad for work and earn money , so need to be patient even unhappy with employer, if really couldn't stay with bad employer better discuss with agency and ask to solve the problem.

Rakhee Bahl -- What's wrong with Indonesian girls these days. All the cases r involving them in news now days. Why are they so aggressive

Nazlynna AshBourne -- Either way takes both sides to clap, if the maid is being abused mentally or verbally, dear maid you know better, pls change employer before something unexpected/unwanted happens and to the employer, if you think your maid is not to your level and giving you many problems, pls change lah, for your own good oso... Safety and security over all other things first...

Marie Johnson -- It had been a string of Indonesian maids turn murderous while working here. I have no comment on who is wrong and right but killing had been a habit on this particular race. I believed this had been in their mind before they came here, "If you are in trouble, just kill". Either we stop this one particular group of domestic helper from working in Singapore or there should be a way to ensure that they can't simply take life with their own hand. They must know where to get help if their employeR are bad. This is so sad. We don't know what fault between this family and their helper but I can only say, it had been alot of murderer from this one particular race. This have to STOP. For the good of both party (helper and employer)

Nafeesa Docura -- there are 250 million people in indonesia. Now i can accept that the helpers from indonesia may need better training when they come here to work ...but you can't point to race.

Kun Tiong Chan -- defence will plead all sort nonsense n maid will be on way home after 6-8 years of r n r at changi resortlike I said b4 if you need a hired killer just go to a maid agency

Thiru SC -- Not the first time and definitely Won't be the lastIf an employer is unhappy over the helpers work ,Just transfer The Helper outWhen one berates, insults and talkdown to the helpers , high tendency for them to hold a grudge and run amok after a while Many innocent lifes have been snuffed out , including children and toddlers, due to abusive adult employers who take things personally And vent it out on the helpers

Tulip Jan -- If every employee when out and killed their employer because they were unhappy, overpopulation is not going to be an issue. People need to start thinking if they really do need helpers and if you do, remember the golden rule.

Chris Ang -- I'm sry to say this OUT LOUD, bt my fellow S'poreans just don't get it abt employing Indonesian maids...1. They don't tink like other maids, different way of thinking vs Filipino or Sri Lanka maids. Indonesians value respect more than anything else. If not, they wll ''sakit hati, mahu dendam bangat''. Got dat?? Go ask an Indonesian person to translate...2. I suspect she had an underlying mental condition dat was nt diagnosed, say marginal schizophrenia. The attack was trigerring by a particular scolding using harsh words like ''bodoh'' or scolding parents. All Indonesian maids wen subjected to prolonged abuse become ''powder kegs'' waiting to.....kaboom....In all fairness, if you ever visited the beautiful country Indonesia, the pple are so nice and vry hospitable to their ''tetamu'', calling them ''Om'' or ''Tante''. So they not so bad, lah just emotionally vry volatile....13 · 40 mins

Nellie Flores Baraquio -- Some Indonesian maid if they don't like employer attitude they have do something hide the foods their employers family putting poison so be careful to them they are very aggressive person most of them uneducated lock of manners moral characters

Jacuzzi Chia -- Indonesian maids tio gong tao is it? Why they so like to kill people?Winter: Killing a baby girl (read below "maid punching 1-year-old girl"), maid's maximum sentence is 10 years' jail and a fine (not convicted yet). A defenseless baby killed but maximum jail term is just 10 years. Whereas, a socialite who seemed to have ill-treated her FDW ... provoked her to vent her anger. Killing an elderly Socialite, Indonesian maid who was 18 at that time, now 20 was jailed for 18 years. See the difference? I don't know what sort of law is out there protecting vulnerable persons. Note: the underaged cruel FDW has only worked SIX DAYS and she was already frustrated to work for a fussy/perfectionist/low tolerance employer. Read Facebook and Yahoo News comments here.Underaged FDW was jailed for 18 years - culpable homicide, The New Paper, 1 Jun 2016She splashed a glass of water on the face of her maid, scolded her and then hit her on the head with a tray. All because the maid, who had just started working for her, used the wrong tray - plastic instead of silver. Socialite Nancy Gan Wan Geok, 69, paid with her life for her ill-treatment of her maid on March 19, 2014.Dewi Sukowati, an Indonesian who was 18 at the time, snapped and attacked Madam Gan at her bungalow in Victoria Park Road, near Farrer Road. She hit her employer's head against a wall and a ceramic-tiled step, then dumped her in a swimming pool, where Madam Gan drowned. Dewi, now 20, was jailed for 18 years yesterday after pleading guilty to one count of culpable homicide not amounting to murder in the High Court. The court heard that Dewi began working for Madam Gan, an accomplished pianist and a porcelain artist who donated to charity, just six days before the fatal incident.Dewi's lawyer, Mr Mohamed Muzammil Mohamed, told Judicial Commissioner Foo Chee Hock that his client was underage when she came to Singapore to work for Madam Gan. Foreign domestic workers in Singapore must be at least 23 years old, and Dewi had used a passport with false information. Mr Muzammil also said in his client's mitigation that Madam Gan had also assaulted a previous maid and hit Dewi with a broom on her first day of work. On March 19, 2014, Madam Gan rang a bell after waking up around 7.30am. When Dewi heard the bell, she brought a glass of warm water on a tray to Madam Gan's bedroom. The elderly woman became angry when she saw that Dewi had not followed her instruction and used the wrong type of tray. It was a minor mistake as Dewi had used a plastic tray instead of a silver one, Mr Muzammil told the court.

Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) James Low said that Madam Gan scolded the teenager in Bahasa Indonesia: "Wrong again, wrong again, very stupid girl, don't know anything." She splashed the glass of water on Dewi's face and flung the tray on the floor. When Dewi squatted down to pick up the tray, Madam Gan snatched it from her. She then hit the back of Dewi's head with the tray. She told Dewi: "I've already told you, you forget again, you make mistakes again, I will cut your salary until it becomes $200." Dewi's monthly salary was not mentioned in the court papers. DPP Low said that Dewi then lost control of herself. She suddenly grabbed hold of Madam Gan's hair with both her hands. She swung her employer's head against a wall with all her strength, leaving her unconscious and bleeding.Dewi became worried when she checked Madam Gan and realised she was still alive. Fearing that her employer would call the police after regaining consciousness, she decided to drown her in a swimming pool located within the landed property. She dragged Madam Gan to the pool by the hair until they reached a ceramic-tiled step. DPP Low said: "The accused recalled the deceased's daily scolding and criticism, and became angry again." Dewi then grabbed Madam Gan's hair and slammed the back of her head against the edge of the step, causing more blood to flow out, he added. She dragged Madam Gan down a few more steps by her pyjamas until they reached the pool. She then tipped her employer into the water before throwing the latter's sandals into the water to give the impression that she had committed suicide by drowning.After cleaning up blood stains on the floor and walls, and changing out of her blood-stained clothes, Dewi went to a neighbour's house and rang the doorbell. Before the neighbour could answer, she saw despatch rider Mohammad Hasri Abdul Hamid passing by and told him: "Help me, my employer is in the swimming pool." They went back to the bungalow, and Mr Hasri called the police. When the police arrived, they arrested Dewi.Paramedics pronounced Madam Gan dead at 9.07am. The cause of death was found to be drowning, contributed by an injured brain due to a fractured skull. DPP Low said Dr Kenneth Koh from the Institute of Mental Health found Dewi to have an "abnormality of mind" - acute stress reaction - when she committed the offence."Dr Koh noted that the combination of the accused's young age, lack of exposure... enhanced sensitivity to further (alleged) abuse at the hands of a perfectionist employer... conceivably caused her to have reacted instantaneously without heed of the consequences." For culpable homicide not amounting to murder, Dewi could have been jailed for life, or up to 20 years, and fined.

Madam Gan was also involved in many charities in Singapore, the US, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia. According to a website named after her, Madam Gan participated in fund-raising activities for the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped, Singapore Cancer Society and the Bone Marrow Donor Programme.

The prosecution described Dewi Sukowati's attack on Madam Nancy Gan as "indisputably deliberate". Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Chee Min Ping said that her fatal assault on the 69-year-old victim was made up of three distinct acts.The first: Grabbing her by the hair with both hands and swinging her head against a wall.The second: Slamming the back of her bleeding head against the edge of a ceramic-tiled step.The third: Flipping her face down into a swimming pool.Urging Judicial Commissioner Foo Chee Hock to jail Dewi for 20 years, DPP Chee said: "After the first act, the accused had 10 minutes to compose herself and calm herself down." But she realised Madam Gan was still alive and hatched a plan to drown her in the pool. While noting that, according to Dewi, Madam Gan had hit her with a tray, DPP Chee said: "Even if the accused had formed the perception that the deceased was at times particular and impatient with her... killing in the context of an employer-domestic worker (relationship) must only be regarded as completely disproportionate and unjustifiable.

Dewi Sukowati's lawyer, Mr Mohamed Muzammil Mohamed, asked the court to jail her for between 10 and 12 years. In her mitigation, he said that his client had been physically abused by socialite Nancy Gan. He said that on her first day of work, Madam Gan had poked her on the head and hit her with a broomstick. Mr Muzammil added that in Dewi's few days of employment, Madam Gan had kicked her on the back and hit her fingers with a plate. He told the court that Madam Gan had also hit one of her previous maids.His legal team managed to track down Ms Nurul Putri Mildanti, who had worked for Madam Gan in 2013, in Indonesia, he said. "According to Nurul Putri, her said employer was a hot-tempered and very impatient person who threw things like trays and other things within her reach at her if she was angry," Mr Muzammil said. "There was an occasion when Nurul Putri was hit and scratched on her hand by Madam Gan." He also explained how Dewi, despite being too young to work in Singapore, had managed to circumvent the law. She had been introduced to a recruiter known only as Pak Bangun, who ran an unaccredited maid employment agency, and he had applied for a passport for her.When she received the passport from him, she noticed that her date of birth was stated as Aug 5, 1990, even though she was born five years later, Mr Muzammil said. Pak Bangun told Dewi to lie about her age and date of birth if she was asked about them. Stressing that his client was an underage worker at the time of the offence, Mr Muzammil said: "The accused was a victim of human trafficking when she came to Singapore to work... "The accused did not plan or premeditate to cause the death of the victim."

===========19 May 2016Winter: This was posted as comment (below). Pasting here for employers to beware. This situation can happen to maid of any nationality, not just Indonesian. Although lately there had been lots of reports about bad/murder-Indonesian FDWs, please note that bad FDWs can be of any nationality. FDWs are smart, don't assume they are stupid! Probably like source country Indonesia trying to imply, their citizens are unfit to become FDWs, be it mentality or skill. Want them as FDW, pay more but lesser work in the form of clearer work scope +more perks ... single task eg a babysitter, chief of the house, chef/cook or pet groomer ... no more dual or more functions! If FDWs/maids become non-existent in Spore, it could be good news because all the source countries have to find a better way to earn foreign currencies and how to milk their citizens using other tricks. This will push PAP/Spore govt to do a better job ... provide adequate services, dig out ways to allow couples to hold full time jobs when FDWs are all kicked out of Spore. This will clear accusation that Employers are paying people extremely low salary and making foreign women work in hell or work non-stop like robot (live in flaw).Domestic workers contribute lots of unreported problems that others, especially activists are unaware nor interested to know. Activists magnified the 'agony of FDWs' but hid the sufferings of FDW's employer. You, as an employer has a lot to shoulder, maybe work longer hours your FDW, stressed but all these were taken for granted by many 'naive' and pretend to be kind people. The fact that FDWs are not slaves is already a root cause and resulted in many problems cum hatred by activists. Having a FDW means employer has a full-time helper at home and FDW gets to earn foreign notes that is much higher own country.... win-win arrangement. If FDWs, source countries and activists kept thinking Employers owe FDWs a lot, employers are not paying well enough, FDWs are overworked/working non-stop then it is time PAP kicks all the FDWs out ... so unappreciative and demanding or thought we'll all die because we lost one breadwinner? Spore is a little red dot meant to be bullied by big countries?

WP number : 005782228Name : Erna Dewi Lestari (from Surabaya)Have a Malaysian husband working in Singapore.For me, no more ex-SG maid! This super experience ex-SG Indo maid in the period of 2006-2013 have 5 employers! With only 1 employer which been able to work for 3.5 years reason being there are 6 adults and employer seems to give her a lot of freedom. Thereafter not sure why, she did not stay with this family and have a change of employer. The rest of the employers she only able to work around of 3.5 months, 5 months and 1 yr. We suspected she was pregnant in her 5th employment as she was married in Singapore with a Malaysian man. She came back after 1.5 yrs after delivery, work from Nov15 - Apr16, thereafter is with me. If the agency (Amore Employment Agency) did not hide her employment history, I definitely will not get her! We are a family of 3 with a 8 years old child, morning till 2pm, she is so free she cannot even bother to do a good job. She has more rest than us, eat also eat more than us, she is still not satisfied. BTW, she dresses very sexy too and even do re-bonding. Her main purpose to work in SG because of the Malaysian man still working in Singapore. Her attitude changed when he went back early this year back to Malaysia after losing his job. For this type of ex maid, it is easy for them to find another employer as they just look for those agency doing re-cycling of maid such as Amore Employment Agency or those operating in small shops.She thinks she is very experienced, such that she does not like to be told what to do as she has her own way of doing things. She does not like to be monitored. A few months into working, she questioned me one day why do I have to lock up my room doors when her previous employers do not. She even question me why do I have so many cameras in the house. If anything missing can always report police or can search her bag before she is to go out on Sunday. If anything we cannot find and ask her, she will ask us to go see our recording. Then I showed her how she behaves when she thinks my camera have been switched off, she went snooping around my drawers and cupboards. I am using a XiaoYi cam and there is a blue indication light, I was thinking can the blue light be switched off and was happy it can be done. When the maid is sweeping the floor, she keeps trying to glance at the camera as she sees there is no blue light. Her reaction is hilarious once she finds the camera have not blue indication light thinking it is not recording.I tried to be understanding and patience, review at her overall performance and have been giving her chance after chance. Work wise she is okay such as cleaning and working, is the work attitude and behaviour that is ridiculously demanding. Work attitude - do not like to be told, do not like to follow your way if she thinks her way is better and thinking a lot about her rights. Behaviour - she uses your things without asking, she thinks it is okay as she ever told me before her previous employer is okay with it. I told her different family operate differently, if previous employer so good, why change? When she breaks your thing, she will not tell you, when found out she just put on an angry look and refused to talk. She always like to say "Go call police lah, say this maid no good", then when I asked her is it she wants to transfer or go back home, she refuses to say anything. The last I can tolerate is she eats before we do!

The day I set to bring her to the airport, is the last day of her special pass as I have been searching high and low and reading what to do since this maid is so experienced. She seems to know what can be done and employer cannot do much. I am glad I do my diligent searching and have terminated her permit such that the day she leaves will be the last day of the special pass. A few days before the D day, she came to me asking for transfer, I told her no problem but I need to have a replacement first. Then the day itself she shouted at me that she cannot wait and want to leave immediately, ask me to send her to Batam. I told her no problem and asked her to bring her luggage out as I have seen her already pack up the night before. She told me I cannot check, I told her not true, MOM said I can check for items that belong to me. She told me she wants to call police, I told her to go ahead but I will make the call. When police arrived, she told the police I stole her tablet, can you believe it? The most ridiculous part is, she and the police the whole time on been conversing in Malay, a language I do not understand and whatever the maid said, the police did not translate to me except the part she accused me of stealing her tablet. She even asked the police to search my house and the police did. I heard bits and pieces such as Malay word for throw, so I suspected she told the police I have threw away her things. Am not sure is this a fair way of this police in handling maid's accusation. To quickly settle it, I volunteer to compensate to get her out of my place.The night she is to depart, I have received a call from airline she refuses to board the plane. However, as there is no case, she had no choice but to do so the next day. I have since submitted my detail as referee. She is not serious to work here, it is just to enjoy her life. She does not mind changing many employers, as long as changing only twice a year will do.According to MOM, if maid do not board the plane, it is still the employer's liability. For those employer encountering such a situation, do not panic, just get assistance from the CISCO guard to escort maid to board the plane which we need to pay for such service. This is as advised by MOM. They said it is very common, so for those maid who are reading this, don't think you don't board the plane means you have the winning hand. Employer can make your exit very grand by having you to be escorted up to your seat!So the best we as employer should do, once find maid up to some pattern, do a good deed for future employers, immediately send them home and submit detail as referee. Even the MOM officer can tell me, they are ungrateful lot, no need to be so sympathetic.==========Posted online on 28 Apr 2016Please be careful of employing Indonesian helperEndriyani FDW WP No 006902294 and FIN No G6568042XShe is very rude and has big attitude problem.She started job with us on 4th of July 2014. After about an year we got a blank call from an anonymous man saying she is meeting her boyfriend after leaving my daughter at school. The man who called knows about everything that is happening at my home including out personal hand phone numbers. We got a call again from an anonymous man with the same reason. He was also requesting me to convince her to love him. I gave him a warning saying I do not have any rights to interfere in Endriyani's personal matters and you both should sort the things out. I also warned him of complaining to police if these calls repeat again.When we asked her about the person who is calling she told various disconnecting reasons and said without her notice that anonymous person had grabbed her phone and made note of our numbers.we believed her as she stayed with us for one year. While these discussions are happening she slowly demanded for few things such as more time for making phone calls, more time off such as leaving home on Saturday night and coming back on Monday morning etc. We accepted some of them as she takes care of my daughter with no complaints. We are not sure if she played the drama of making calls to get her demands fulfilled.From that day on wards for every small thing she started saying I want to leave. As we had no choice we accepted all whatever she said and made her stay.Since Saturday my daughter had fever and just recovered yesterday. We didn't even sent her to school. When we asked her to buy groceries from the downstairs mart she had taken my daughter along with her as my husband and I were not at home. But instead of just buying groceries and coming back she was sitting at basement for 50 mins and was making calls to someone without being mindful of my daughter's sickness when it was too hot outside. As per our agreement she was supposed to use phone only in the afternoon while my daughter is sleeping and in the night after all the work is done.In the meanwhile, one of my neighbors informed that she shouted loud and also wacked (though not very hard) my daughter in basement because my daughter was not letting her make phone call. This behavior of her is not tolerable to us. We asked her about all this and initially she said no for everything. When we saw her phone she has dialed calls during 1:20 to 2:10 pm and also later agreed on shouting and wacking my daughter. Looking at her change of behavior and also her attitude of saying lies we felt uncomfortable to leave our daughter with her anymore. So we decided to terminate her contract early. When we said in about a day or two we will tell you by when to leave she was very furious and started repeatedly saying "I go tomorrow". She also does not respect us and my in-laws well and always gives rude answers. We have been very tolerant considering that she was taking good care of our daughter which also has come to an end now. This morning when she didn't come out of her room even after past 7 o'clock we opened her room door and could not find her in her room. She had left in the night after we all slept without informing us, which is also not tolerable.

Indonesia to stop exporting maids by 2017, Mypaper, 16 May 2016Indonesia will stop locals from going abroad to work as domestic maids starting the end of this month, followed by a complete shutdown on the supply next year, by order of President Joko Widodo, local newspapers reported."Those who already have suitable employers abroad, who pay good salaries and provide amenities, can continue to stay on," Soes Hindarno, director of placement and protection of overseas workers under the Ministry of Manpower, told the media last week."Indonesian embassies can still process job renewal if it is a good employer-employee match," the Tempo newspaper quoted Mr Hindarno as saying in Bandung, West Java, where he was attending an official event. "But there will be no more newcomers from Indonesia by 2017," he added.The target, the director pointed out, is for all local workers abroad to be true professionals working in companies by 2018, with no more as maids in households. The cut-off of the maid supply will first be applied in the Middle East, followed by Asia-Pacific in 2017, including Hong Kong, the Suara Merdeka online portal reported Mr Hindarno as saying.His ministry estimates that there are seven million Indonesians working abroad, with 60 per cent of them domestic helpers. "Domestic workers still contribute a lot of problems. The market opportunities are wide so why are we relying on this low sector?" asked Mr Hindarno.Sunarno, inspector general of the Manpower Ministry, said the government has set up a programme to expand employment opportunities at home to make up for the closing of the overseas maid sector. West Java governor Ahmad Heryawan told Tempo that his government supports the move to ban sending locals to work overseas, in particular to the Middle East, where they enjoy no human rights protection.Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently announced that President Joko will fix the problem of domestic maids working abroad being subject to indignities and human rights abuses.The Migrant Care non-government organisation recently declared its findings that the memoranda of understanding (MoU) between Jakarta and several countries on the employment of Indonesian maids do not contain human rights provisions. One example is the MoU with the Malaysian government signed in 2006 which does not state the maximum working hours, the minimum age of maids and their rights, including the freedom to join a union, said Anis Hidayah, director of Migrant Care.Indonesian maid punching 1-year-old girlon her neck and gripping her neck tightly with all your strength till she died, Straits Times, 10 May 2016An Indonesian maid was on Tuesday (May 10) charged over the death of a toddler in her care. Maryani Usman Utar, 30, had allegedly caused the death of one-year-old Richelle Teo Yan Jia "by punching her on her neck and gripping her neck tightly with all your strength until she stopped crying, with the knowledge that such acts were likely to cause her death".Maryani has been charged with committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder, with the knowledge that her actions were likely to cause death, but without intention to cause death. She allegedly committed the offence between 2am and 7.36am on Sunday (May 8), at Block 225 Simei Street 4. If convicted of the charge, she faces a maximum sentence of 10 years' jail and a fine.Maryani stood expressionless in the dock as an Indonesian interpreter read her charge out to her. District Judge Christopher Goh granted the police prosecutor's request to remand her for a week, with permission to be taken out for investigations. The case will be mentioned again on May 17. Maryani was arrested after Richelle was found unconscious by her father at home on Sunday morning with bruises on her neck and head. The girl's lips had reportedly turned purple, and she was pronounced dead in hospital just after 10am. Maryani was not at home when the toddler was found unconscious as it was her day off, reported Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao. She had reportedly been out since 8am.Police arrested Maryani in the Marina Bay Area later that day. She was taken back to the Housing Board flat by investigators on Monday. She is believed to have worked for the family for more than a year. It was her first job in Singapore.Richelle's family were at the mortuary on Monday to identify her body, reported evening daily Shin Min Daily News. They included her parents, elder brother, aunt and grandparents. Richelle had reportedly celebrated her first birthday just five days before her death.Facebook comments:David Strat Lou -- From 2am to 7.36am??!! So the toddler is sleeping with The Maid not the parents??!! If not the parents would have aware of that...Noor Isliza Magiar -- Parents nowadays just pushed the sleeping hours also to maid. 24 hours

Pearl Zin -- Court should file a case for those irresponsible parent!

Noor Isliza Magiar -- Parents that I knew who pushed their babies and toddlers to maids, said that they needed their beauty sleep. Asked them, then how about the maid? They are not slaves. And I was unfriended in FB. Lol

Candy Rueangsri -- It's like she's working 24/24 that's why she became mad with all the crying , the parents are part responsible , that's sad though. Poor little girl rip

Joanne Wang -- Noor Isliza Magiar agree, but is it a good reason for a maid to kill baby?

Thomas Chong -- How could the family entrust the one-year old infant to a maid? The maid-does-all mentality must stop!

Julian Agung -- If that the case, I have to say, maid its not a robot,, 24/24 awake.... ????? Where the parent resposibility ??

Thomas Chong -- It's a sad case and a tragic loss of an infant who had just arrived in this world for a year. I hope this case will be a reminder for all would-be parents to act more responsibly and take good care of your child.

Ieza Kay Noor -- Isliza Magiar You know what? The exact same thing happened to me! We live in a society where we pay others to look after our old parents and raise our little children after blaming all political parties for giving us a hard life and the rest of us who choose to care for our own parents and children are deemed to be poor and uneducated (that's why cannot go out and work la.. no qualifications so stay home).

Lian Lian -- Employers may need to sleep so to get to work and bring in the dols....and pay the maid. Who knows what happened to the parents that night? Maybe Bad day? Fever? So pls stop pour oil into fire when we kno nothing.U think parents do not like their babies?Nothing warrant killing a human. Whether u r maid or king.

Luffy Cat -- It's a saturday and the child is sleeping with the maid. The maid must have been very tired what with full day work and night too. Sleep & rest deprivation can lead to mental imbalance.

Annie Chan Xue -- I believe we all need to refrain from judging when we do not know what happened. It is easier to judge where we stand. Given the sensitive thoughts for both parties, both have lost. As a parent who have lost a son through natural death, it is heartbreaking. What more for this family. We all have opinions but at this point refrain from judging. Peace out people.

Noor Isliza Magiar -- I used to have maids too. I worked and was heavily pregnant in my third trimester. But, from the beginning, I made a rule. Maids stopped working at 8. I do grocery, I cooked too. She only looks after my toddler then, cook for him and bath him till 8 pm. She gets her rest. Whole day? Only sweep and mopping. Nothing else. Yet, my maid claim stress. Weekend off lagi. Saturdays, I looked after my kid. No matter how tired I was, my child is still my responsibility. They sleep with me and I am the one who makes them sleep. Not maid.

Boy Barry -- The maid killed the baby..not the parents..thats all matters to me.Regardless how irresponsible is the parents,the maid should not do wat she did to the baby.

范添迪 -- This is why maid shouldn't sleep with the infants. Even we as parents can get stressed and angry when our kids are crying non stop in the middle of the night, imagine a stranger left to accompany them, don't know what they can do to make them stop. At least we won't kill our own offsprings.

Kiang Tan -- Parents must looking after that own kid in the night, not the maid, maid must work in the day night time maid go sleep? Singaporeans they have little bit money want to at like big boss...some they not evern have maid befor when come and work with the family they not really treat the maid good maid must work and work not slaves this will give than a lesson Lai Yin Lee -- Kiang Tan it's your own kid. Look after the kid yourself especially at night. Why do parents allow kids to sleep beside maids? When kid sleeps beside the maid, they will get too close.

Fatima Fenequito -- I been working here in sg from 2006 till present...when i came my maam new born was 24days,still had confinement..she and i slept with new born..she taught me wat to do & how to take care specially at night coz my maam had to go back to work aftr her maternity leave, coz i love so much to take care new born, i accept all responsibilities as a mother.then,from 4 mos.to 4 years old i slept with my lovely boy..when he smiled at me, all the tiredness and sleepless night was gone.Today, i ask my self how can i leave this lovely boy behind?(for good)

Karen Francise Tey -- It is unjust to judge when one is not fully aware of the situation. B gracious, thoughtful & considerate to the parents who lost their kid in this case. One will nvr know nor apprehend unless one is in their shoes. I'm adamant that the parents r devastated so b kind to them n let them grieve in peace. Spare them the harshness of the tongues. Who r we to judge...especially when we dnt even know what actually happened..n no matter what, one human being shd nvr kill another human being let alone a young defenseless little one. The law is too lenient to these helpers who kills cos they r too "stressed out" or "unfairly treated". Anyway peace to everyone 😊

SriHaryanti MamanyaTami -- I'm here with my employer already 4 years.when I coming my mam still pragnant,and now the baby is already 4 years old.that time I'm also the same I need to take care new born baby 24 hours and day time I still need to working.im really so stress that time. But now after the baby go to school they ask me to do all the house work even clean the aircorn also.

Daniel Koh -- My son slept with me and wife at night, but come morning we always find son in the toilet.....and my bed is pretty high....so, end up we have to put mattresses and pillows all around our bed. Still he wakes up in the toilet, lol. Perhaps this child wasn't meant to be born. Maid must have went thru too much stress to do such a thing to a newborn.

Lynn Flint-Sung -- Based on my knowledge, it's quite a common practise for parents to leave their baby, toddler and children to sleep with their domestic helper. To say that no one have any right to kill/hurt a defenceless child. It's a very sad tragedy. Btw Iezz Kay, engaging the service of a domestic helper is not an indicator of your social status. How could it be when the family usually need 2 incomes to pay bills and etc? It's a case to case situation and should not be a generalisation here.

James Loh -- Domestic helpers should only do household chores and not look after babies or toddlers. It's ok to outsource household work but it's not ok to outsource caring of your child. Hope prospective and new parents take note of this incident.

Ben Lim -- James Loh shall we not judge parents who need to have others care for their children? there are some people who truly have little choice. infant care centres are hardly any better, but in singapore where both parents work in most families, it is unavoidable fate

Ummul Ammatullah -- There is another possibility. That, all the kids (they have another child right?) sleep in a seperate room, not with the maid. I know its a norm with ang mohs esp, they dont co-sleep with their kids, even as young as a month old baby. Hence, u have the baby monitors abound there. Some trained their kids to sleep on their own, some use the cry-it-out method. This possibility cannot be ruled out until it is confirmed that the kids do sleep with the maid.

Eunice Tan -- Lynn Flint-Sung it is sad that parents leave their children to sleep with helper. Both my husband and I are working parents, already time with kids is so little by time we go back that we find it a joy to put them to bed every night and hug them to sleep. Tiring yes, but that's the price of having kids. No point give birth to kids and just pay money to outsource the caring of kids.

Lynn Flint-Sung -- Eunice Tan - It's sad but unfortunately it's common practise in Sg where children sleep with their domestic helper based on my understanding. I'm in a very lucky situation where I'm a sahm to care for my girl and still have some "me" time where we'll send her to play school in the day for 5 hours so I could rest and relax. Night time it's usually my husband who put her to bed with bedtime stories. During weekends, it's a shared responsibility between us parents. I don't think it's wrong to outsource some helps to lighten the loads being parents. Having a domestic helper, nursery, child minder, grandparents and etc .. these are the resources to help the parents. The issue here is the knowledge of sharing. People tend to overlook or taking stuffs for granted and forget the basic that sharing is caring be it between husband/wife, employer/employee, parents/grandparents .. The "ME ME ME" mentality and self entitlement is usually the downfall in most cases unfortunately.

Ailen Castor Lorca -- I come to my employer my boss younger child 4months old . my madam sleep with her at night .i heard bby crying at nyt i go inside her room and help i carry then bby stop crying now i still working here meimei going 7 yo nxt month .my english poor and not good in house work but becouse i take good care the 3 children my employer treat me like their own sister .nobody can bully me here my boss alwys helping me hehe proud maid here .godbless us.

Lynn Flint-Sung -- If you guys agree to the phrase of "don't give birth if you are unable to look after your own child", you might as well say .. don't get married if you are unable to rely on just 1 income to support the family and paying bills and/or one of you are not able to be a stay at home parent.. Duh!

Rita Noritah -- 2am- 7:36am. That means the child is sleeping with the maid. Its the parents responsibility to atleast take care of the child at night. Maid also need to have a gd sleep every night after a tiring day. Previously, I have a very nice hardworking n trustworthy maid but I never let my children sleep with the maid coz I knew how tired it is after doing those never ending house work + sending fetching kids from sch. My maid works with me for 4yrs b4 she went back coz I migrated. Im happy with her. Up till now been almost 7yr, we still contact each other. Mutual trust responsibility n understanding is very important.

Ayhana Mher Benamir -- Now im coming 5 yrs to my employer. 1st child and 2nd child. I sleep with them at night.i tired to much.and stress. 24 hrs im with them.madam and sir go work every week days. and i do housework.. just patience and hardworking!! And God's guidance everything will be alright!

Tanedo Jeanalyn -- Why this maid do that such a thing to kill the baby... If she cannot handle this kind of job.... She must give up and tell to her employer that she do want to look after...

Dayang Nusa Kambangan -- Im working for france family for 6 years take care 3 kid from monday to friday n the kid no sleep with me but they are sleep alone ,saturday n sunday the kid with my employer so i have free for saturday n sunday

Lim Jong -- Only death sentence can prevent maid murdering children. Sg law is so sweet to maids. Parents are also responsible. They ill treated the maid, the maid ill treated the child.

Carlos Bott -- Every week there are 2 or 3 cases of serious maid abuse in Singapore. Death sentence needs to be given to those abusing maids as well.

Carlos Bott -- Singapore should 'man-up' as a country and join the 1st World. Other than Hong Kong, Malaysia and the Middle East, the rest of the world doesn't use domestic helpers on the scale as Singapore. You deserve what you get by being societally lazy and using maids. Europe, the US and Japan are modern, 1st World societies and we never use maids. So stop using maids. They are not your slaves or indentured servants.

Lim Jong -- Carlos Bott young ladies from the poor countries are able to support their families working as maids. They are not forced to come, but by the time their families are rich enough the ladies miss out on marriage and remain single. They are not slaves, (yes, maybe they are)

Carlos Bott -- They do. But it's usually through falling from a high-floor window in an HDB flat. Then it's classed conveniently as an accident or suicide. Singapore has one the highest rates of this worldwide. Why? Maybe 20 are killed this way every year.Time for society as a whole to stop using maids and domestic helpers. Maybe this can be used as a wakeup call. No more abused maids or killed maids and no more dead kids ( if in fact, it was the maid, I agree, the maid should hang, but the parents should be jailed as well for assessories to homicide.)

Daniela Angel -- Some maids cook food before leaving the house , come back cook again for dinner .some of maid mothers day still at the cage do cooking cleaning washing etc.not even boss say its your day thanks for being a good mother / maid for us and my kids..some of maids only 1 sun off but must leave the house after all done cleaning and comeback b4 dinner to cook..some of them sleeping n the hall no rooms no enough sleep .no enough food abusing the helper ..bt some.was so lucky with good mployer too.. Theres a good and bad side to both helper and mployer ..Let the heart see what the eyes cant see .. Will im here for longterm already i say singapore best country i been n korea & macau but singapore is best ..Julian Agung -- Think n think..N think......both side is totally wrong....maid n employer...Employr...why you dont treat your maid just like your own family, scold them but not to use rude n dirty word, n make them feel free on their offday, n not to do all your house work then after they just came step out from the house. Cos some maid not even got everysunday off, mostly JUST once a month....how can you not feel what they feel also, if YOU are the one in their place,,, how you feel, just imagine????N of course,most of the maid. Just follow what the employer ask them, but u never know what in their mind if they lost their self control..this will happen

Murni Chania -- Totally agreed. .the way you treat your maid it would show up the maid treat your kids,..we are human, sometimes we lost control, especially when it tired, stress , still get scolding. No matter what. ..killed isn't the right way. Just take it for a lesson to the employers.

Mitra Sharon Herela -- It depends to the person ma'am Reshma MB..as a domestic worker my priority is to do my work not using phone..i will use my phone for the important matters not using all the time..

Julian Agung -- Wht the stupid comment... ?? Phone its very important things got employer also for maid,,, pls la, dont bring this phone matter,,,if anything happen into your house how to call in emergency...lucky if you got a house phone, but some employer dont have, they (maid) also have a family. Think about that, if employer always tied up maid with stupid rule, they will become so stressed, mad, anger, n in the end,,,, even they never think to treat your family bad, but becos you treat them that way, in return, your have to take so big consequence by lossing your dearest one,,, anyway,, kill the baby is not the right way , she must pay what she did...hope this world be a good lesson for some employers...dont look down on maid, cos they are the one who do what you can't...

Linda Tan -- I hope that the maid get to suffer the same as the little employer. How can she do this to a 1 yrs old kid. She dont heart ar..... she very heartless. If she rely dont want to work, pls go back to agency n dont qork for them n must kill the kid. What happen if she is the parent herself n her kid was being killed. Of cos, she will be very sad. I hope that our govt law to give this maid a heavy sentence and n give the little life a peaceful day.

Hilary Chng -- This is ridiculous. . An innocent life is taken. . She gets only jail term. There is no reason to kill or take the life of another innocent defenseless baby no matter how unhappy she is. It's brutal. I'm sure the baby smiles back at her too during days when she is down. Where is the humanity?

Chona Betidos -- JUST PUT URSELF IN THIS MAID SETUATION WORKING DOING HOUSE CHORES AND LOOKING AFTER BABY WHOLE DAY AND AT NITE STILL BABY SETTING SO TIRING LIFE AS AN EMPLOYER TRY TO DO THIS TO URSELF SEE IF YOU CAN TAHAN. VERRY EASY TO SAY A WORD JUDGE OTHER PEOPLE WITHOUT LOOKING OURSELF IN THE MIRROR.

SH Ong -- Nobody can force you to work long hours if you not willing to... just quit and get back to your own country.. Dont have to go to the extend to kill a innocent kid..

Loh Wai Poon -- At 30, she should be mature enough to take care of baby? Does she has depression or family problems at home? Punching a baby of 1 yr to stop her crying is so inhumane n ridiculous, it may be sign of mental illness? She is a maid but we must give her a fair trial. Our legal system must be fair to all. Give her the fair treatment she deserves as a suspect. Law is blind. Prove it to all.

Calvin Pillai -- "Maryani has been charged with committing culpable homicide not amounting to murder, with the knowledge that it is likely to cause death, but not intention to cause death or injury likely to cause death."Straits times.What kind of rubbish is this?

Shirley Soh -- Y maid need to punch the 1 year old baby girl to death? How can a 1 year baby girl knows? Only baby girl knows is crying two things hungry & discomfort. The maid should be sentence to death whether is homicide or accident. She deserves to punish hell as well.

Jeffrey Pun -- Tho the main responsible for tis crime is the maid... but hard truth is.. the family decision. It not gvt job to do the seletion progress to see which maid are able to care for infants/children/handicap parents etc... it down to the FAMILY who decide if the maid is capable or not. U stay with the maid, u see her everyday, u need to communicate and understand YOUR maid. They r going to be part if your family. U must know them juz like knowing ur own children behaviours. Then u will hv better assessment to know if ur maid coping well on their daily duties. YOU must know by checking with them.The problem with our society... if u cannot trust a maid... dun employ them in the 1st place. Our society treat them differently. Assume they must cover ALL housechores duties. Not every human being are the same. If we can treat a dog so good and in return, the dog become ur best friends.. y not a maid. And these helper will become ur most reliable person to care for ur family needs. It not other ppl responsible.. not maid agencies... and pse.. not Govt... is each of you in the family to be responsible. To know ur helper better, to understand their emotion and needs too.

Vito Moe Ang -- Need to hang her no other sentence is justifiable for such cruel and inhuman acts worst than animals

Pete Marshals -- The need to be extremely cautious with who you let around your loved ones cannot be further emphasized. While a maid is hired to help with babies, housework, elderly parents, etc, we must not forget these individuals come from very different backgrounds. Perhaps in those places, life is cheap. Many are from mountains, villages and desert settlements. Nothing to do with mental illness. They get pissed off, they injure and kill. Think: how can even 1 or 2 years of 'training' by the agency or work experience change the mental psyche of such humans? Best practice if you really need a maid near a loved one, get a tried and tested human with 'plenty of years of service'. Increasingly busy lifestyle has resulted in the oversight of even the most obvious of factors - personal safety.

Kamalathevy Vythilingam -- Sometimes can't blame the maid if parents can sleep with their child & let the maid rest definitely nothing will happen. If everything the parents rely on maid was the purpose of having kids. Nowadays working parents are pampered themselves & leaving their child with others. Whatever works parents do shift or non shift try to sacrifice time with your kids & show the love together & sleep with the kids by telling story times. Just wish this maid gets light sentences & no laws takes their own for death sentences

Regina Cherie Lim -- Never ever trusted a maid wholeheartedly...although I let my maid sleep with my baby, I will never lock any room, so if bb cry at night, I was there for her too. No excuse to punch a 1years old...it is inhuman.

Vincent Teo -- Who the hell punches someone on the neck with no intention to kill?! Obviously is murder! Our prosecutors got problem

Eezan Khaylazan Farsyaannkhay -- The maid is most definitely guilty. The parents are also equally guilty because they could have avoided this. BUT I think the government MUST start looking at this issue more seriously and start implementing stricter standards for maid agencies in the selection of the domestic helpers. Obviously, mental stability and the ability to handle stress and pressure must be taken into account.

Serene Olivia Loo -- All Singapore maid is too protected by our Government, as such, the need to be extremely cautious when you want to employ them. If they come for steal and destroy, employer have to pay air ticket to send them home, That's illogic. While a maid is hired to help with babies, housework, elderly parents, etc, these individuals come from very different backgrounds. Perhaps in those places, life is cheap. Many are from jungles, mountains, villages and desert. Nothing to do with mental illness. They get pissed off, they injure and kill. What's a big deal, sad to say that, they are well protected though they committed crime.

Adeline Cheong -- It's really disheartening to hear such news... Reading the article, it happened in the middle of the night , where are her parents, if the child is crying and seeking for attention continuously, shouldn't the parents intervene to check out what happen ? The maid could have in a state of irritation or having problem at home which resulted her to commit such act .. Yes she is a maid and that's her duty to look after the child , but she is still a human like anyone of us here . We do get tired from a day work, that also apply to her ..and if parents are too busy for personal life then don't bear a child cos that is your responsibility as well .. Sometime it could be due to accumulation of problems .. We are not in their shoes and can only have all assumptions .. Life loses due to the child is defenseless and innocent..maid not in Correct states of mind to manage this .. Parents ??? .. It takes two hand to clap . Justice will be served .

Diana Wong -- Since the maid has to punch & strangle the baby until she stopped crying, I wonder why this baby's parents were not awakened by her cries in the silence of the night Pearl Zin -- Should send parents to jail, too, for their irresponsible act of letting the toddler to sleep with a maid at night and not letting the maid to have a full rest at night.

Elizabeth Phua -- Poor baby. She was so innocent. Hope the parents will b strong. And this again affirms maids can never be trusted no matter wat. I hope parents will b more careful (eg put up cameras ard the hse) and think twice abt entrusting their kids to the maids. Yes we shld not abuse maids but we all need to protect our loved ones frm maids too.

Jennifer Poon -- That's y all parents need to work for high-cost living here, then have no choice but depend on maids to take care of their babies & toddlers. If life is not so hard here in Singapore, I believe either parent can take care their own children. I always believe, if you intend to have children u must prepare to take care of them, don't depend on maids/helpers/care-takers.

Angeline Au Yong -- No matter what the reason to kill a 1 years old is heartless ,she should be given10 years ,cane and death penalty. Too many news on maid killing and abusing kids

Cherry Tan -- Do the same as what she hd done to the toddler! ! How can she torture the toddler only a yr old ?!!what has the toddler done to be deserved it ???! The poor toddler hd done nothing and nothing can be done too !!!! Who ever did it wrong but nothing concerned the toddler, she shud hv her own life to carry on !!! No mercy to inhuman! ! No more excuse for light sentence for maid ! Otherwise I will not believe on our law is justice and shame on it too !! Seems many maid can just kill someone because they are mentally stress ! ?That's mean others can do the same too ??? Employer can kill maid bec maid make employer mad too !!! Then u will start seeing people kill people everywhere in our society just because we are mentally ill !!!!👹👹👹

Shalini Shroff -- There is no justification for killing a defenceless child. The maid was a caretaker and she breached her duties. Regardless of reasons be it employer was abusing maid or if she was overworked, the maid as a grown up had the option of leaving her job or even reporting her employer to MOM, instead of murdering the innocent baby. Nope, no matter what you say in your defence, it cannot justify killing the child. I wish you nothing less than hell.Lee Lai Lai Amy -- Is it true that the maid is 30 years old? She doesn't seem so and I was told that many lie about their age. How would you know? If there is fake diploma, there could also be fake ID. Parents that employ maids to look after small children must be extra attentive to your child and not to assume that your helper could do everything. They are only helper, they are not the mother of the child.

Tricia Wong -- Maid has been working for more than a year and the girl was one year old. So the maid had been with the child for a year. Not even a slightest feel of love for the young girl? How cruel and brutal she is...

Christina Wong -- Saw some comment is way too stupid. Saying abuse maid had to death sentence too. Abuse but didn't die. So employer will go in to the prison to sentence. But not life sentence. But taking a life away. Should sentence to death. This maid should sentence to death instead of 10 years. So our little one is not a life? Why don't ask the government to die instead. See will The Maid life sentence or not.

Patricia Soh -- It's obviously murder..punching on a vulnerable and innocent 1 yr old baby..RIP baby..10yr is too lenient . We need death penalty to warn these maids, no mercy for such a beast

El Char Le Grabs --This is why, parents should not allow their children to sleep with the helper. If the helper does all the job during day time and including night time, how could she find peace even for a while? How could she rest? And for the parents,have some considerations. You know how to have a child but you dont know how to take care of them during night time? If that is the case, hire two helpers to care for your baby mainly, so that when the baby sleep, the helper could sleep and have some rest. While the other helper does the household chores.Being a helper is not an easy job, if you dont believe me, try it for yourself, do the jobs that the helper is doing, by doing that, you will know.In this case, thou i dont condone the act of the helper as the baby is innocent , i guess the parents are liable as well. Give the helper a fair trial.

Sangha Vandana -- For new maid especially from a village, they are not used to urban life let alone looking after baby and toddler. MOM must make sure the agents include a short course on infant handling before they are allowed to work for employers.

WeiXin Happygolucky -- She knows that what she was doing could cause death.. Doesn't this justify her act as murder? I hope sg govt. or law review this case and hang this maid to death.. Really damn angry to see such a news. Not happy just don't work or confront the employer.. Why take it on a helpless baby?? The maid sentencing to death will also send warning to all the maids working in sg... Don't think they can get away with anything !!

Mohd Khir Mohd Noor -- Both side must investigate,for employee their burden pushing to maid...for maid better check must be mental problem?

Mohd Isbandi -- Wonder if her case being covered in Indonesia. How is their reactions? Their govt always demand on maid's pay coz not justifying their duties. So this is wat most employers had to endure! Justified that!

Nora Fdz -- Due to high cost of living, both parents need to work and left with only solution is by getting a maid if no one in the family can babysit. What i think is money can alwys find in many ways thou hard but our child can never be replaced. Rather struggling or living by own means by taking care of our own children. Coz we can nvr know wat will happened next thou u treated the maid extremely gd. They r still a strangers to our child n family. Much condolence to the affected family. Be strong. 😢

Victoria Ong -- 10 yrs only??? Such charges will invite more killing and crime .... Sending the wrong message "ill treated by employer = depression = can kill?" If she is under depression, She would have shown some symptom already. She can always ask for transfer, which most FDW are good at doing that... To her life is cheap, but to a 1 year old child ... It's just just so wrong

Mary Tan -- This is a family problems that Singaporeans will be facing if both parents working more hours than spending more time with children until the age of 67 years old. P.A.P MP David Ong and P.A.P members Wendy is the best example of P.A.P government on both parents working until aged 67 years old. So are they still continue this mistake with both parents working system until age 67years old? Do P.A.P MPs addressed what have happened and why it happened in Parliament? Now, it another cases of both parents only want to enjoy the baby bonuses and left all problems to let the maid handle. So who to be blame under such circumstances?

Oli To --If a domestic helper is to be left alone for an extended period with a child or an elderly member, please install CCTV to monitor the home activities to avoid abuse or neglect by the helper. Some elderly can be very nasty to the helper. Kids can get out of control or abuse the helper as well.

Vicvic Iscala Ibutnandi -- As a domestic worker,it can be tough and very stressful our task at times , so to our employers, please be willing to hear us sometimes. Talk to us as a friend. Bcoz in my own experience for 22 years as a maid, we need this good communication between employers and helper. It is bcoz there is time we have family problem in our hometown, or we are stress in something and we need someone to talk to..to give u comfort, but sometime u get this unpleasant treatment from ur employer or from a member of a family. So I think , openess and good communication under one roof is really important between maids and employers.

Rukati Atmaja -- Very sad to hear that but also very hard to say if this such thing could happen and all for the maid responsibility to be blame . Sometimes many parent both very busy and never know or maybe really don't want to know how their children behave but also highly expect from the maid to settle all duty without any wrong doing and no excuse for such a little fault. Especially for taking care of baby is really need patience, keep stable emotional and energy, that's why sometimes will loose control if too much pressure and depressed. Otherwise for all friend whether Indonesian or other country...please well behave and well managed of our tantrum whatever it's condition cos of responsibility of duty.

Vin Chia -- I suggest the government may able to control all this indonesia to enter singapore,coz they can't take stress at all

Shi Su Chen -- This disheartening news has brought back unforgettable memories whereby both my little vulnerable ones were physically abused by helpers. Sacked them at once and quitted my work to look after them by myself. My heart is with both parents during this difficult times.

Anupama Gautham -- She should be hanged to death! No mercy here.. Imagine the amount of pain the baby would have gone through! after being in so much discomfort and crying for so long.. OMG the state of the baby is unimaginable!

Zura Zurah -- As a maid .we paid you to work here and in return u kill the child .what is this ? MAID pay is getting more and this what happens after. Please look into this .

Juanita Holbert -- The maid should have quit if it was too much on her to handle a constantly crying baby!! This could have been prevented!!

Kevin Goh -- From most reports thru the years, most killer maids seems to be from Indonesia. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Alfred Gan -- These actions are more akin to Murder. What culpable homicide? Total absolutely RUBBISH!

Indonesian maid to be charged over child's death, Straits Times, 10 May 2016An Indonesian maid will be charged today over the death of a toddler in her care. Maryani Usman Utar, 30, was arrested after one-year-old Richelle Teo Yan Jia was found unconscious by her father at home on Sunday morning with bruises on her neck and head. The girl's lips had turned purple, and she was pronounced dead in hospital.

The police, who received a call for assistance at 9.20am, said Maryani will be charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder. She was not home when the baby was found unconscious as it was her day off, reported Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao. Police arrested her in the Marina Bay area later that day.Yesterday afternoon, police officers took her to the Housing Board flat where she worked in Simei Street 4 , her wrists and ankles in restraints. According to the family, Richelle's father was praying in the bedroom while she slept on the morning of Mother's Day. Her mother and older brother were out at the time.After he finished his prayers, Richelle's father tried to wake her but found that she was unconscious. Worried, he took the toddler to Changi General Hospital. But she could not be saved and was pronounced dead at 10.08am. Richelle's grandfather, Mr Teo Xiong Kun, 81, told Lianhe Wanbao that his family had repeatedly tried to call the maid after the incident, but she could not be reached. She had been out since around 8am. The police eventually found her. She is believed to have worked for the family for more than a year. It was her first job in Singapore. Around 10 members of Richelle's family were at the mortuary yesterday to identify her body, reported evening daily Shin Min Daily News. They included her parents, elder brother, aunt and grandparents. They took with them some clothes, pink shoes and a toy. Her aunt told the Chinese newspaper that Richelle's brother had yet to understand that his sister had died. She also said that relatives often visited Richelle's family in Simei during weekends. Richelle celebrated her first birthday about six days ago, said Mr Teo.Last December, an Indonesian maid was sentenced to 10 years' jail for killing her employer's 76- year-old mother-in-law by smothering the woman with a pillow while she was sleeping.Facebook comments:Shalini Shroff -- There is no justification for killing a defenceless child. The maid was a caretaker and she breached her duties. Regardless of reasons be it employer was abusing maid, the maid as a grown up had the option of leaving her job instead of murdering the baby. I wish you nothing less than hell.

Anne M M Seow -- I hope that the maid will be given the most appropriate punishment for killing an innocent life! She shouldn't have taken her problems out on this poor child!

Joanne Sobrielo Lim -- Well said. The maid is an adult with options,even in the face of abuse or mistreatment by her employers. But the child is totally dependent on his caretakers and totally defenceless. There's simply no excuse for this crime. Justice must be served.Calvin Pillai -- Shalini shroff.And concluding early into the case as,"culpable homicide not amounting to murder" is unjustifiable enough".This warrants a jail term of up to 10years. Im not surprised...when it comes to a defenceless child being killed by a foreigner, the initial charge is culpable homicide. And it usually applies only when a woman is concerned.If it was a sinkie, you can rest assured tht the initial charge would be under section 300A murder.Im not really surprised early into the case that the non capital charge was put forth, before an autopsy has been concluded as of yet?

Shalini Shroff -- Calvin Pillai The maid has been arrested? The baby is dead? Why? You think there's a possibility that the maid is innocent? How so?

Tay Jooking -- Shalini Shroff, this is the beauty of jurisdiction. It allows every accused to be given the best defence in trial before it could be sentenced instead of being abandoned by everyone like you.

Albtross High -- Fair justice should be done.A lost of a life and a lost of a child.Breach of trust.The agony that the child went through .The agony that parent and brother not included other family member which can lead into depression.

Calvin Pillai -- Tay JookingI understand where you are coming from.However, the case hasnt even gone on to the trial stages yet. Its still under investigative stages and police will sumbit to Prosecutor of their intention to charge under culpable homicide.Usually dpp proceeds with the police recommendation and in rare cases it gets upgraded to section 300A. Ive never heard of such an upgrade before.Ive only heard of downgrade of the initial sumbission.

Aikawa Nakamura -- Read the news properly. The maid was NOT in the home on mother's day to have committed the crime (it was her OFF DAY). In fact, the dad (father of the baby) was at home. She could be proven innocent. The news was written in such a way to distort facts and deceive, so as to rake in high readership and sales.

Jeremy Hu -- Yup if maid was not home on that day, then whoever else was at home then should also be investigated

Joyce Chen -- i think it will be even more sensational if father is the killer. dont argue for the sake of doing so and dont blame the media for nothing

Aikawa Nakamura -- Calvin Pillai: This is still undergoing investigations, so you cannot immediately accuse the maid of committing anything.Don't forget, there have been past cases of fathers raping their own babies and then putting the blame on their domestic helpers. The father is also a suspect. There are many sick men out there who rape or murder their own children.

FengquaN Koh -- It will be hard to imagine if the father is the killer. Before she left the house at 8am, she could have already killed the child.And her refusal to answer any calls from the family is suspicious as well.

Rhapsody Hues -- For those of you who are blaming the employers again as a justification for the maid's actions, shame on you for not even having the heart to sympathise with the child's grieving parents or the defenceless child whose life had been taken away. How will you feel one day if your child or loved one is killed by a maid and people are falsely accusing you of ill-treating the maid when you have not. In the first place, is not even proven that this maid was ill-treated in any way. Secondly, no one forced the maid to come here to work. In Singapore, many of us work for 7 days a week too due to conference calls etc.. Does that mean we kill our employers? Hence stop defending maids for the sake of defending them. They deserve to be treated fairly, and so do employers. Fair and square. The law must protect both maids and employers too. No doubt there are employers who ill-treat maids. But till date, there have been NO reported cases of employers killing maids. Conversely, we hear maids killing employers and children. See the difference? Maids must not be protected and defended to the extent that they think they can get away with anything just by claiming depression.

Aikawa Nakamura -- Read the news properly. The maid was NOT in the home on mother's day to have committed the crime (it was her OFF DAY). In fact, the dad (father of the baby) was at home. She could be proven innocent.
The news was written in such a way to distort facts and deceive, so as to rake in high readership and sales.

Huizhi P Peko -- Aikawa YOU need to read the news properly. The baby was found motionless at 9.20am. The maid had gone out BY 9.20am but the article didn't say she was out the whole night so what makes you think the maid couldn't have done it first thing she woke up before she went out?

Tania Willcox Grose-Hodge -- Rhapsody I totally agree that this is very tragic and the only victim here is a beautiful defenceless child but I think what most people are trying to say (myself included) is the article is written in a ways that creates suspicion that perhaps the maid may not be at fault. The facts that the ST list make many of us stand up and think "well hang on a minute, the maid wasn't even home and she's guilty?" What about the mother? She wasn't home either. What about the father? he was alone with the child. So until we really know all of the facts we can only speculate from the written word. What should be fact here is that unless she has confessed (which the ST did not report that), then all of those present in the house between the times that a coroner will determine upon autopsy, are under suspicion.

Lyn Woods -- The article said they receive assistant call at 9;20.... Not the maid out at 9;20.... Is not clear to everyone of us what is the reason why the child unconscious coz to her death........its true maid are not pushing to come here in Singapore to work but employer is the one to choose her helper.....for me I'm sad for both side.hope the real happen coming out soon to be fear for the victim and suspect....
And most helpers who involve into like this case did not use to be thier excuses the depression or thier illness to have a light punishment.....as I read the news....

Margaret Perrin -- It's wired story. Father was at home doing his prayer. Baby was sleeping. Usually that baby should be crying if anything happen. And Maid was her off day on Sunday. I'm not sure is maid fault.

Jude Lek -- As a father it aches me, but I still believe that human are kind in nature. Something must have went wrong to have possibly triggered her to hurt a child. May the child rest in peace

Siti Zai -- Sorry to say this but i think the story has alot of question mark.. beside accusing the maid should also blame the parents, pray so long in the room until cannot hear what happen, then the mother go out cannot bring the toddler along? This happen on sunday not weekdays. If working days i can understand

Kenny Koh -- I can see most of the people blame the parents .. there is no reason for the maid to kill a child.. even you are not happy with the job. Just ask to leave.. My brother let his indonesia maid home because her family problem back home.. a innocent life.. dun alwalys think is ill treated case.. it maybe the maid have mentally problem.. she hide from everyone.. who know. RIP baby child.

Leah dela Cruz -- I don't know why such parent can't take care your own child I give up working and everything to take care of my child I don't even trust my relatives to take care of my Child Hire a maid to take care of your house but not your child to be parents that's our job and responsibility not other..Your child now is gone.What else u can do without your child?

Jay Junichi -- Now the story goes..the maid was mentally unsound...stressful...pressured by employers...ill treating...abusing...

Jeffrey Tan -- she should be charge for murder and hanged, not that homicide not amounting to murder. That is a defenceless baby you know? Although i'm not the father but it aches me alot. how can a maid do such a thing?

Princess Chubbie -- Sometimes we treat the maid good, in return dey are Devils behind the employer back.. I'm so lucky to have a fresh Maid who really take good care of my daughter & my house... Hopefully she wanna sty.. Cos I don't trust other maid... ESP who like to practice black magic. Condolences to the parents of this lil cute girl... Rip.

Hoeden Nina -- A common nonsense happening often, maid/ boss abuse... it's brutal... don't need maids lah, do own self, more gratifying and the proof is in the pudding... only the queen can employ maidservants, no problem because there are maid managers to oversee and be in charge ! No encouragement needed... maid levies makes gov richer then got so much headaches.

Mala Vanan -- To those out there who are praying for this women god has eyes. If she committed the murder she ought to be tortured and her soul should never rest in peace. No matter what her excuse is she took it out on an innocent child. I really wish she never becomes a mother in her life. She doesnt deserve tobe a mother. Mothers pls realise a maid cannot substitute you. If your child cannot talk to a stranger then what is a maid??

Leah dela Cruz -- The worst part. The Child was Abused to death. My heart aches as a parent I'm doing everything to protect and give upeverything to take care of my Child.

Uddin Jasim -- Confused! If father and baby is at home and maid wasn't still around. How can a baby got such a bad injury without a crying loud voice. Also maid went out her off day @ 8am. So how is the baby death maid fault ? Don't always blame maid. Sometimes Man can rape a maid when his wife is away.

Wilkie Ong Keng Soon -- There is a growing distrust towards domestic helper to look after babies. The person can be treated very well, but can do stupid things to the helpless child. Govt should step in to provide readily available infant and childcare at nearby locations and make sure no such thing as no vacancy.

Nyein Ma -- Why?!?! There should be psychological and personality tests before employing a maid or a babysitter. If one cannot afford for them, better take good care of own child or if mom and dad both have to work anyway, better plan not to have a child.

Low Serena -- Only ppl who do not have maids talk a lot and do not know the stress employers have to face dealing with all these crazy maids. Most of the time employers do not torture the maids but most of the time the maids are driving the employers mad! It is often the case when employers treat them nice and they are taking advantage and they are unappreciative. These maids always think that when they come here, employers have to treat them well but are they treating us well in return? Are they loyal and sincere towards the family? So to those who have no maid but talk so much, please get one yourself and you will know what I mean.

Veronica Fun -- RIP little soul. A cute, defenceless & innocent life has been taken away, it must be extremely devastating for the family. Can we empathise with the them instead of passing insensible remarks? How will you like it if you are in their shoes? There must be enough evidence for the police to arrest the helper.

Linda Neo -- If the employer has ill treated her, she should take it on them and not the innocent and defenseless child. Such a coward to bully the helpless.

Robert Koh -- Richelle Teo RIP…… This case has more twist then what was reported here, The deceased mother suffers from schizophrenia was unemployed and faced with bankruptcy. Family are facing financial problem (reported on AsiaOne). Let wait for our SPF to complete their investigation and report their findings.

Sean Pang -- Dun understand why hurting n killing a toddler barely the age of 1yr old does not amount to murder! She should be hang!

Wendy Goh -- NEVER,NEVER,NEVER take a maid if can.Children can give house auntie take care,house can get cleaning service company cleaning per week once.Why must employ a maid at home? They are just like a bom in our house.

Deltamaris Sri Wulandari -- Its make me sad to read this kind of story tht done by my country people(sigh) again, to all my indonesian friends please think it many times bfr u make an action, if u think u cant handle the job or u cant get a long with ur boss, just leave ur job, break ur contract, its better than u put urself in trouble by hurting other people, its just not urself but it effected many people with ur action, think many times bfr u accept the job and if u decide to take the job please be responsible Kevie Syde -- Most of child being murdered cases here were done by indonesian maids. Anyway,let her being dealt within the court of law till we all knows what really happen that tempted her to do such cruel thing. Deepest sympathy to the family.

Yustanti Vanpelt -- Child abuse again n again by maid. What's going on with Indonesian maid. I'm Indonesian too, my heart broken every time I heard of Indonesian committed crime in others' countries. It seems like Indonesian people losing the nature of tolerance, passion, and morality. Rest in peace little girl.

Jesse Lam Chin Har -- Why do you have to accuse the employer? It could be due to the maid

Linda Tan -- Nowadays maid very daring.. kill owner lah n now 1 yr old kid also wanted to kill. She dont have ant heart meh... better be careful for those who have maid at home with children only. They dare to do anything if they get angry with the children. Y must she do this to a innocent kid. Is not her kid n someone kid whose mother pregnant for 9 mths. So scary....

Winner-Jhonshon Bakara -- Singapore has a good record of clean justice system. And only registered lawyers can present. She'll have a lawyer. Government will provide for her. It's her constitutional right in Singapore Ratnapande

Rose Farrellio -- Why are nowadays maids are so inhuman?? When too much of off day/freedom/social network allowed/loosen up, this is the results we employers have to face.... We - employers suffered not the govt hah!!! 😡 I wonder if they're here truly for a jobs or social visits and pleasures... May Allah protects me and my family from such evil DH.... We don't spend monopoly money on you ppl sey....... All are our hard earned money... Sucks big time!

Sylvia Haughey -- The government must implement not just medical health checks but also mental health checks on Domestic helpers, too many cases already!!!

Tan Kiam Hu -- There were several murders committed by maids on either their employers or the siblings in decades but as far as I know, none executed. Most of the murder convicts served time between 10years to 20 years. Hope this could be an exception!!

Jess Lee -- The world is like that de.. whenever there's an issue with the maid and employer... the employer is at fault de. Right!!! Stop arguing with those people cos their logic is out.

Keith Alexis -- So sad to hear this kind of news...my deepest condolence..I hope It will give more lesson to all of us...I wish those who hiring maid esp indo maid pls treat them well...they won't make like this if no big reason...to all maid pls do ur job properly...your employer is ur 2nd family u must take care of them...if ur employer not good ask them to go home or u ask ur agency to transfer killing or hit them is not solution..u come here for ur dreams...

Abdul Malik Mohammed Ghazali -- If maids know they are coming here to work, why do they have so much problems?

Clifford Chan -- Time over time we see such tragedies committed. Maids are to b treated right & fairly. They are only humans. Normally if not mentally depressed theres really no reason for killing except for abused or mistreated.

Indonesian maid Supadmi Sidek has been with her employer for almost four years. She draws a salary of S$550 a month, what a new maid with no experience from her home country will earn from next year. When the increase kicks in, starting wages for Indonesian maids will be among the highest for foreign domestic workers in Singapore.

"I don't mind paying my maid her current salary at S$550 because she has the experience and she's been with us for a long time. But to pay a fresh maid at the same salary - that may not be justified, with their skills," said Ms Farzana Abdat, Ms Supadmi's employer.

While Farzana does not mind paying her maid a higher wage next year, not everyone might be willing to do so, especially when skills have not improved in tandem. "The Indonesian authorities imposed a system of 400 hours of training for fresh domestic workers who come in, but we do not see the impact of that 400 hours. In fact, we have seen the quality of the trainees dropping," said President of the Association of Employment Agencies (AEAS) K Jayaprema.

"That is a real concern for us, and AEAS will actually be taking this up with the Indonesian authorities to ensure that (if) you request for an increase in salary, then you must improve the quality of the domestic workers on par with this request."

The association said employers are increasingly turning to Myanmar as an alternative source country for maids. Maids from Myanmar made up about 4 to 5 per cent of foreign domestic workers here three years ago. Today, the figure is about 15 to 20 per cent. Meanwhile, the proportion of Indonesian and Filipino maids has fallen.

Ms Jayaprema added that it may no longer be an employers' market. Households needing childcare and eldercare have driven up demand around the region, and starting wages in Singapore are relatively affordable compared to places like Hong Kong and Taiwan, where employers dangle salaries of around S$750.

"Singapore is only paying S$500. Even if you increase it by S$50, it's still only S$550. There's still a gap of S$150 to S$200. So we see that Indonesia's policy is not just grabbed from thin air," said director of Nation Employment Desmond Chen.

"It is not really that cheap, frankly speaking, in Singapore. The difference is at the most S$50 or so, maybe S$100. More important is that you get someone who is willing to work for you, who is honest, sincere," said Mr Chua Kim Soon, who employs a maid from Myanmar.

The association said that ultimately, both the employer and the maid have to commit to a partnership that shows respect for the other party's needs.

Ex-maid from Indonesia, Straits Times, 13 Dec As a teenager alone in a foreign country, Indonesian maid Nova Erni Esiana Bones cried almost every day for the first month after arriving in Singapore. With no mobile phone and no friends, all she could do was to think of home and her parents - the left-behind drivers of a dream.Seven years later, she is still working as a maid, but in Bali, Indonesia - and she now soothes the cries of her baby girl who cannot bear to lose sight of her. "I have a family now, a husband and daughter. I'm happy staying with them and working together here (for now)," said Ms Bones, who turned 26 two weeks ago.Work permit holders make up the bulk of Singapore's foreign workforce. As of June, seven out of 10 foreign workers in the Republic hold work permits. Of them, 227,100 are domestic workers while 322,400 are in the construction industry.They are also paid the least: both professions earn between $450 and $650 a month. To make more, they sometimes give up days off to work overtime. There are around 125,000 Indonesian maids in Singapore, and about 70,000 maids from the Philippines. Construction workers come from countries such as Bangladesh, India, China and Myanmar. The breakdown is not available.Adequate time for rest has been an issue for some domestic workers. While a weekly rest day has been mandated for them, employers can pay them in lieu of a day off.Just 18 years old and fresh out of high school, Ms Bones had to go pass an English test, a medical check-up and a mental health check before she could be cleared to work as a maid in Singapore. Despite the tough initial period, things got better after six months, when she was allowed to have a mobile phone and could contact her family, although she rarely had a day off. Her main task was to look after the employer's elderly mother and accompany her during stays at Tan Tock Seng Hospital.She also learnt to cook. Some of her best memories are flavoured - spicy mee siam and savoury glutinous rice, which she learnt to prepare for her employer's church gatherings.After she finished her first two-year contract, she returned to Kupang, Indonesia - where her parents live, selling bananas and lemons from their family farm - for a two-week holiday.But her father was warded in hospital due to a bacterial infection of the stomach. Looking after him, she was struck by the differences between her experience in the hospital there and that in Singapore. "Nursing in Kupang is not like in Singapore. I want to improve the standard," she said.After returning to Singapore to complete a second two-year contract with her employers, she returned to Indonesia to start studying for a degree in nursing at Stikes Maranatha Kupang. It was one of the best times of her life.

Although her parents and fourth brother were supportive of her studies, which would cost around 60 million rupiah (S$6,000) over 41/2 years, she did not want to place financial strain on them, especially on her brother who had just got married and was supporting his sister-in-law's studies. Thus, she made the choice to drop out of the course and go back to work.Thankfully, with Singapore on her biodata, she was able to find a job as a nanny and housekeeper with Bali-based Australian fashion designers within two weeks of looking.

She sees working as a nanny or housekeeper as one of the more lucrative jobs around, paying around four million rupiah a month, compared with the 1.2 million she earned during stints as a baker and waitress during her pregnancy, which did not leave much after covering the 600,000 rupiah monthly rent for her one-storey, one-room boarding house.She harbours hopes of coming back to Singapore. It is where she "grew up", she said, explaining: "Last time I would think, 'Today I eat what, tomorrow I eat what'. I didn't think about how to save more money."In Singapore my eyes opened. It's difficult to find money, you must work hard. But I knew what life is, I felt like an adult. I could enjoy myself, buy new clothes and earn money."There is a simple pride in her voice as she talks about the tangible help she has been able to give her family. "I could bring back a lot of money, and my parents can feel comfortable in the house."She added: "For 18 years we didn't have a motorbike!"This is why, although her Bali employers are kind, quiet and fair people, she still hopes to get a job offer in Singapore. "I need money for my daughter," she said. Pay for Indonesian maids in Singapore has risen to around $500 a month, and may go up further to $550 next year if the Indonesian Embassy here has its way.Ms Bones also believes living costs are lower as a maid in Singapore, where food and accommodation is provided and she can save up money for Acha's education.

"Work is hard but it makes life easier," she said. "I want to improve life for my little family."Ensure Indonesian maids don't end up paying the price for higher salaries, ST Forum, 18 Nov 2015I am glad the Indonesian embassy has set the minimum wage for maids from Indonesia at $550 ("Higher pay for Indonesian maids from next year"; Nov 11). My concern is that somehow, agents will find a way to get around this and impose a higher service charge.The Indonesian embassy should ensure that only registered and legitimate agents handle recruitment and visas; otherwise, maids will be charged a higher rate. The Indonesian government should fix a charge and stipulate that maids should not be charged over and above that amount. As it is, most maids work without pay for up to nine months; this pay is collected by the agent in Singapore instead. This is totally out of line and should be stopped.Maid agencies and the middle men are the ones making the most money. The Indonesian embassy should also look into a minimum wage for construction workers, as there is no minimum wage for these poor workers who work long hours.Shamim Moledina (Ms)Change lifestyle to cut reliance on maids, ST Forum, 18 Nov 2015It is hardly surprising that the Indonesian authorities are demanding higher salaries for maids from their country ("Higher pay for Indonesian maids from next year"; Nov 11). Our reliance on foreign maids is a perennial bugbear for us, and it is time we looked at the entire situation in perspective.While people with young children and elderly parents may consider maids indispensable, there are others for whom employing a full-time domestic helper is not an imperative. Perhaps we can seek other alternatives or change our lifestyle. One possible way is to settle our own household chores. For instance, it is not necessary for a family with teenage children to engage a full-time maid, especially when the young ones spend a considerable amount of time in school. The children can also chip in to do simple housework like mopping the floor, clearing the table and washing crockery after meals. Maybe we should think about hiring part-time domestic helpers on a weekly or fortnightly basis. There are many middle-aged women doing general chores at coffee shops and hawker centres. I do not understand why they are not keen on working as part-time domestic helpers.The Manpower Ministry and other agencies should come up with incentives to encourage locals to work as domestic helpers. Such a step seems far more sensible than continuing to be wholly dependent on foreign maids, to our detriment.Jeffrey Law Lee Beng

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~Winter: 9/2014 Indonesian fresh maids had a pay rose from $450 to 500 = 11%Indonesian fresh maids (no experience) to be paid $550 in 2016 = 10%. Don't forget if you don't intend to give FDW off days, Employer has to add $80 to 100, making a monthly salary of about S$650 with daily living expenses paid by employers... total cost to employ a live-in maid would be around S$1700/month. Spore low income earners earn about $1000/month. After deducting their living expenses, most are left with zero, they probably don't eat better than maids, maybe only take 2 meals to cut cost.... likely to work harder and longer hours than maids. Don't understand why so many people are outdated and kept thinking FDWs are underpaid! Read: Who earns lesser than FDW?With effect from 1 October 2015, HK Government stated the DH Minimum Allowable Wage is set at HK$4,210 (S$754) per month for foreign domestic helper, $100 increase from HK$4,110. Most of the domestic helpers are experience maids .... painstaking trained by Sg employers. In Hong Kong, domestic helpers can typically be charged placement fee around 31,000 to 37,000 (S$6700÷754=8 months free labour) Hong Kong dollars in total, according to Hong Kong-based non-governmental organization (NGO). By comparison, in the Philippines, the median salary for a housekeeper is around 129,000 pesos or less than $3,000 (S$90) a year, according to PayScale, a compensation data provider. In a perfect scenario, one domestic helper chosen (employed) immediately, the profit margin could be 75% for the agency, said Scott Stiles, Fair Employment Agency's. (Winter: Some Sg agencies encourage FDWs to work in Hong Kong stating the agency fee is much cheaper. FDW will fly Sin/HK. FDWs pay full agency fee, no instalment in order to save.)"There are thousands of agencies in the region, perhaps hundreds of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) concerned with migrants and also probably hundreds of interested academics, but as far as I know, no-one has published a break-down of the actual costs of recruitment alongside the charges typically made by agencies," John Gee, chair of the research sub-committee at Singapore-based non-profit Transient Workers Count Too. "We think that agency charges are largely a matter of what the market will bear, rather than a reasonable percentage mark up on services provided," Gee said. (Winter: I agree agency fee should be more transparent. It will give FDWs a clearer picture before they are conned by recruiters to fly over and work as maids)Around 50 percent of Hong Kong's more than 330,000 foreign domestic helpers are from the Philippines, while around 45 percent are from Indonesia, according to data from Hong Kong's immigration department. "Sometimes they have to pay their whole salary for [monthly payments] and they are left with nothing. They have to borrow more," Asis said. "It creates a vicious cycle of debt." If the workers can't pay, they receive court orders in Chinese and sometimes face illegal collection methods, including death threats, a situation worsened when contracts end before the full two-year term, as is often the case, he said."The amount domestic helpers paid can't even afford basic living," said Ann Lee, a Hong Kong NGO. In addition, "sometimes the contract will suddenly end and they have nowhere to go." If a worker gets sent home, the chances of ever shaking free become remote. "The agency will come after her for the debt. Also, her family is often angry. They may be pursued by the original recruiter or agency in the home country," said John Gee, chair of the research subcommittee at Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2), a Singapore NGO. In closely knit rural areas, coming back without money can also be seen as an embarrassment, he noted. (Winter: This is an 'interesting finding', at least maids in HK are made to be responsible for their actions and loans. If can't pay, their families will be hunted/pestered. In Spore, Employers have to pay maid loan on behalf of FDWs - held at ransom.... means Sg FDWs have no financial stress/strings tied to them so if they run or job hop, their employers suffer financial losses. It is our money, we lent FDWs our money in the form of maid loan.... interest & hassle free to FDWs!)

Demand for Indonesian maids likely to fall in Singapore after pay rise, Straits Times, 12 Nov 2015With the minimum pay for Indonesian maids set to rise from $500 to $550 in 2016, maid agencies in Singapore expect to see a fall in demand for them with the wage hike. But they do not expect this to last for too long."After the second month, the market tends to adapt," said Mr Gary Chin, managing director of maid agency Nation Employment, citing the experience from a previous wage hike. The previous increase was in September last year, when the minimum pay for Indonesian maids rose from $450 to $500.The Indonesian Embassy announced the latest increase in a letter in October to Singapore maid agents. One of the reasons cited was to protect the income of Indonesian women who go abroad to work. Singapore agents have to abide by the minimum wage or risk being banned.COMPARISON OF MINIMUM WAGESMinimum monthly salary of domestic workers from three most popular countriesINDONESIAFrom $550 starting in 2016THE PHILIPPINESFrom US$400 (S$570)MYANMARFrom $450

While Filipino maids were in great demand in the past for their command of English, they are less sought after now, partly because of their higher starting salaries of US$400 (S$570). Ms Dione Yap, 43, who is self-employed, said salary was among her considerations when she hired a maid from Myanmar. The pay for an experienced Myanmar maid is around $500, comparable to the basic pay for a fresh hire from Indonesia.Sales executive Fiza Sulaiman, 32, said she already pays her Indonesian maid around $550 each month and does not think she will be affected much. She added that the pay rise was good for maids who do not often get one from employers.According to Mr Liew, the wage increase may also lead to more people renewing their maids' contracts - instead of terminating them for new hires - and conducting private negotiations to pay them less than the minimum wage.The smaller maid agencies expect to be harder hit by the new minimum pay. Ms Sa'diah Saidi, owner of SJ Global Employment, said most of the maids she places are from Indonesia but she may have to look to Myanmar or Cambodia if wages continue to rise.Some agents in Indonesia have also stopped recruiting in the meantime until they are clear on the new regulations, so supply may shrink. She added that if wages continue to increase, it may become a luxury for middle-income families to have a maid, even if they need one.Maids' pay rise boon or bane? Straits Times, 12 Nov 2015The Indonesian Embassy has told agents that from next year, new contracts for maids from its country should include a monthly salary of at least $550, up from the current $500.While the move may appear to be a boon for Indonesian maids, more could end up struggling to find jobs if employers turn to cheaper options from Myanmar, for instance.With the change, the minimum wage for Indonesian maids will be closer to the minimum monthly pay of US$400 (S$570) mandated for Filipino maids by their government.

There are around 125,000 Indonesian maids in Singapore, and about 70,000 maids from the Philippines.These make up the lion's share of the more than 227,000 domestic helpers here, with others coming from countries such as India, Sri Lanka and Thailand.The pay rise could also see the booming maid transfer business, which works with helpers already working in Singapore, get even bigger.If employers have to pay $550 a month for a new maid, they may think it more worth their while to hire someone who is already trained and familiar with local culture.Still, employers may lose out if the new pay rise leads to a price war - with governments of various countries setting increasingly higher standards of pay for their nationals. The Philippines government, however, has not increased its stipulated minimum monthly salary for maids for more than a decade.In the end, it comes down to supply and demand. Unless there are more Singaporeans stepping up to the roles of caregivers and housekeepers, foreign domestic helpers may continue to command better wages.And why not? They still earn less than most Singaporean low-wage workers.There is something to be said for changes that make for a more equitable society.

Employers will have to pay more to hire an Indonesian maid from next year. The Indonesian Embassy had announced in a letter to Singapore maid agents last month that maids from its country must be paid at least $550 a month, up from the current $500. The last round of increase was in September last year, from $450 to $500.There are about 125,000 Indonesian maids in Singapore, making up about half of the foreign domestic worker population here. Indonesian Embassy counsellor Sukmo Yuwono told The Straits Times that the increased minimum wage applies to domestic helpers coming to work here from January next year, and those renewing their contracts next year. He cited several reasons for the Indonesian government's decision, including protecting Indonesian women who go abroad to work."We have to protect the income of the Indonesian maids. Singapore also doesn't have a minimum wage, unlike others like Taiwan and Hong Kong," he said. Mr Gary Chin, managing director of Nation Employment, a maid agency, said that higher salaries might attract more applicants to work here. "But the increases might be too frequent. Employers need some time to digest and get used to it. Some might consider hiring workers of other nationalities," he said, adding that domestic workers here are paid $450 to $550 each month.Another agency owner, who declined to be named, said that the increase came as a surprise as worker salaries was not one of the issues raised at a recent meeting an Indonesian government official had with several maid agencies. "We discussed many other issues like regulation and loans, but salary was not one of them," he said."We will continue to face increasing salaries if we don't improve the work conditions here," he said. "The supplying countries can't change our laws and regulations. The only thing they can control is the salary of their workers." When contacted, the Ministry of Manpower said that it has not received any official notice about the new minimum wage set by the Indonesian government. "While source countries may choose to impose additional requirements administered by the foreign government or embassy, employment agencies and employers should assess whether they can fulfil these requirements when recruiting foreign domestic workers and making their hiring decisions respectively," a spokesman said.

Indonesia plans to stop sending women to work as domestic helpers overseas,16 Apr 2015, Straits TimesDuring a recent visit to Malaysia, Indonesian President Joko Widodo expressed shame when discussing the issue of Indonesian women working overseas as foreign domestic workers (FDWs).In an effort to preserve the dignity of the nation, the President announced plans to stop sending women to work as domestic helpers overseas. In doing so, he failed to realise the greater consequences of legitimate employment opportunities for women being cut.The growing gender challenges of development and economic growth aside, women also face numerous cultural hurdles in establishing economic security. There is a need for more income-generating opportunities to be provided for women in order for them to live stable, secure and, indeed, dignified lives.Instead of "band-aid" solutions, policies should be aimed at greater regulation and protection of FDWs. It is, in fact, by empowering its women that Indonesia will find greater dignity.There is ample evidence from cases in Asia and elsewhere that higher female incomes most often go towards the betterment of the family. This includes increased household food security and greater spending on education and healthcare. For these women, financial independence puts food on the table, sends their children to school and takes care of their families' health and welfare.Higher incomes for women can also help to narrow the gaps in resource distribution between genders, which can have a positive impact on the community as well. However, given prevalent gender inequity, income disparities between men and women remain high. This creates a culture of dependence for women.Women who are economically insecure often encounter many obstacles. Many women tolerate years of physical and psychological abuse because they do not have the financial means to make a life for themselves.Increasing levels of economic security for women should be a key concern for government, given the various setbacks that arise as a result of their financial dependence. Being engaged in gainful employment enables poor and dependent women to negotiate for the lives they wish to lead. It gives them a legitimate "space" to freely leave the home and return without compromising their roles as daughters, sisters, wives and mothers.In the eyes of many conservative families, looking after children or a home or the elderly is a "decent" job through which their womenfolk are permitted to enter the workforce. Many women, with their limited education and skills, find the skill set for domestic work within their capabilities.Indonesia does not want to be seen as a net exporter of its people. However, it is high time leaders realised that FDWs provide a valuable service in receiving countries. Politically speaking, such a move to curb FDWs may assuage the middle and upper classes who do not want the country to be seen as "lowly", but it does little to alleviate the plight of women who see being FDWs as a chance to get out of the cycle of poverty.Indonesia is one of the top three countries in the world supplying domestic workers. For the poor and disenfranchised Indonesian women, domestic work is a job that empowers them financially. In spite of having to face uncertainties in receiving countries, being away from all that is familiar and facing the possibility of ill treatment, women still leave to work overseas.The industry is thriving and, until other employment opportunities for these women open up, it will continue to flourish.Indonesia has a large population of FDWs in the Asean region and beyond. These women contribute significantly through their remittances to their country's economy, with almost all their pay sent home to families. Stopping this will just push them into more fraught ways of earning an income. It will also make them more vulnerable to being trafficked.Migrant worker numbers in Asean countries are growing. Thus, greater regulation and monitoring seem to be the order of the day. FDWs need to be made more aware of their rights, and there should be help centres and agencies set up to make sure that there is easy access to assistance if needed, including easy communication with their families back home.The provision of such assistance needs to be decentralised and located at village levels and in small townships across the country.Expanding the geography of receiving countries for a job that is in demand can also play a part in protecting these women. Countries with stronger labour laws that protect the rights of the worker and with good diplomatic ties with Indonesia should be seen as potential receiving countries.The creation of jobs domestically to absorb additional numbers of unskilled females may seem a good idea, but the total number of this group will increase if they are no longer allowed to travel out of the country to work.Moreover, the Indonesian Manpower Minister's claim to send only "well-equipped and skilled workers abroad" will already exclude a large number of women. As part of the wider objective of building an Asean community that is centred on its people, a better option for Indonesia would be to raise its game in empowering women through greater access to education and safeguarding their rights and interests.

Skills training, increased literacy and political participation, as well as equal opportunities, should be available to women and should be part of the plan to maintain Indonesia's development trajectory and its dignity as an influential entity in the region.

Maid spikes breast milk with essential oil, The New Paper/Lianhe wanbao, 9 Jan 2015
Her employer's wife had scolded her for not completing some housework she was asked to do.
Unhappy, the 28-year-old Indonesian maid mixed some eucalyptus oil into milk meant for the couple's infant son.

She pleaded guilty in court yesterday to one count of attempting to administer an unwholesome item to the then-two-month-old boy, knowing it would likely cause hurt to him. The maid cannot be named to protect the child's identity.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Delicia Tan said the child's mother, a manager, had stored her breast milk in disposable packets which she placed in a refrigerator. She would personally feed up to three packets of the milk to her son every day. Her husband, a property agent, employed the maid on June 2 last year. But the Indonesian maid wanted him to terminate her work permit and send her home after she was scolded over housework on Aug 23.

On the same day, the maid was alone at home after the family left their house at around 2pm. She took a bottle of eucalyptus oil, retrieved two packets of breast milk from the refrigerator, and poured some of the oil inside. After that, she re-sealed the packets and placed them back in the outermost part of the refrigerator. The maid did so as she knew that the mother would likely take them out first to feed her son, said DPP Tan.

Soon after returning home with her family at around 6.30pm, the mother took out a packet of breast milk from the refrigerator as she wanted to top it up. Noticing a pungent smell when she opened the packet, she decided to check the others and found that another packet also reeked of the same odour.
She told her husband about it and they decided to check the maid's personal belongings that evening. They found the bottle of eucalyptus oil on a cabinet. The smell resembled that of the tainted packets of milk.

The couple informed the police at around 11.45pm. The police arrested the maid and seized the packets of tainted milk and the bottle of oil. The Health Sciences Authority analysed them and found that all three items contained eucalyptol, a natural organic compound derived from eucalyptus. It also contained terpineol, which is a kind of alcohol.

The maid, who was not represented, will be sentenced next Thursday. For committing the offence, she can be jailed up to 10 years and fined.

26 Aug - Philippines has made announcement to stop its citizens from flying out to work as maids. Indonesian also wants to do the same thing. So what must we do? Continue rely on them? Allow them to mark up, increase wages but work quality remain at record low? Singaporeans enjoy being or waiting to be slaughtered? MOM wants to keep things this way, allows source countries and agencies to make the calls .... do whatsoever ways that can make needy employers' lives miserable? Otherwise, force mothers to stay home and be homemakers, indirectly welcoming more foreigners to fill the juicy positions, press our salary further down but increased our living costs?

The government wants to end all Indonesians going abroad as maids by 2017 - a goal many feel is unrealistic. But rising minimum wages back home and tougher competence standards have reduced the number of people leaving their families to take up menial jobs far from home.

"The decline in the number of maids going overseas reflects our current policy, that is to encourage overseas Indonesians to take formal jobs," said Reyna Usman of the manpower and transmigration ministry. "We prefer seeing quality over quantity."

The move came after the government faced mounting criticism over reports of the horrific abuse of Indonesian maids abroad. In 2010, a 36-year-old maid working in Saudi Arabia was reportedly thrown into a dumpster. The story came to light just days after another maid, a 23-year-old, was said to have been badly beaten by her Saudi employer.

In 2009, Indonesia banned maids from going to work in Malaysia after abuse cases there and reports of maids not being paid. The ban was lifted in late 2011 after Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur hammered out an agreement on measures to better protect maids working in Malaysia. Bans on Indonesian maids going to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait and Syria are still in place.

The declining foreign maid trade has been felt all year by Rusjdi Basalamah, who owns an agency that sends maids overseas. "We are trying to figure out exactly what caused this," he said. "Tough regulations - more red tape - and better economies in the (maids') stronghold regions could be among the reasons."

Suhartono said: "The pay is greater overseas but living costs are also higher. More and more people prefer to stay and work with less risk and near families."

How wages compare: RM700: Average monthly wages for an Indonesian domestic worker in Malaysia RM1,200 (S$464): Wages in Singapore RM2,292: Wages in Hong Kong and Taiwan.Read: Maidless in Malaysia

Malaysia must start looking for maids elsewhere and Singapore should also do the same because Indonesian maids who still worked in Malaysia in 2017 must leave the country once their work permit expired, as the source country would not allow for a renewal. It had been reported that Indonesian Consul-General in Sarawak, Djoko Harjanto, said Malaysians (same for Spore employers) would have to seek domestic helpers elsewhere when Indonesia stops supplying maids to the whole world by 2017.

Malaysian National Asso­ciation of Employment Agen­cies (Pikap) president Datuk Raja Zulkepley Dahalan said it would look into renewing talks to get maids from Myanmar and China.

Malaysians claimed the live-out maid proposal could be a solution to the current maid shortage.

“It seems like an automatic solution but a few things should be considered. It must be within the legal process. For example, if a maid gets abused at the second house or after she leaves a house, we must ensure that innocent employers are protected.” “Similarly, what happens if a maid leaves a house, goes somewhere else and contracts an illness? Who will be responsible? Employers and their families must also be protected, especially healthwise,” he said (May 2013, Nation, The Star).

Under the proposal, maid agencies would provide accommodation for the maids, who could also choose to stay on their own on days off. They would also be required to only work eight hours daily, six days a week and be paid a minimum of RM600 a month as well as overtime.

RM600 (S$300) salary was a “little high”, noting that live-in Indonesian maids were currently paid RM700, including lodging and meals. Malaysian Association of Foreign Maid Agencies (Papa) president Jeffrey Foo said that although it was open to the idea, it would wait for the Malaysian authorities to comment on the matter.

Meanwhile, many Malaysians have questioned the implementation of such a proposal, with Kee Kai Ming writing on Facebook: “How will they send the maid to work? Who is going to open the door for the maid every day and who will be responsible if anything’s wrong or something goes missing?”

Fuad Azizi said such a proposal would mean that the agencies would be the maids’ employers and should bear the expenses for “permits and medical check-ups”. Jasmin Mohd Saad, whose mother had a “live-out” maid, said she would prefer such a solution herself. “But it needs more consideration and should be a fair deal for both sides in terms of money, convenience, working hours and privacy.”

Another amount has been proposed for the contentious hiring fee for Indonesian maids, with the Government putting it at RM8,000 (S$4000).

“The RM8,000 was decided after considering the cost of training for at least 200 hours, documentation, food and accommodation before transfer to the new employers, travelling cost, medical check-ups as well as payment to the respective government agencies of both countries,” he said at a meeting at Parliament House.

It was reported under the Memo­randum of Understanding (MoU) between the Malaysian and Indone­sian governments in 2011, the cost to recruit Indonesian maids was set at a RM4,511 – where RM2,711 was paid by the employer and RM1,800 was paid by the domestic helper. It is believed that under the new rate, Malaysia employers might pay an additional RM1,800, apart from the RM8,000, which would later be deducted from the worker’s salary over the first six months of the contract.

He said the new revised rates was considered reasonable compared to the other countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong who were paying Indonesian domestic helpers at higher rates.

Employers have been cautioned to be careful when hiring Indonesian maids to look after their young children or elderly folk as the maids are not trained for this purpose. The Malaysian Maid Employers Association (Mama) said employers should check the training certificate of the maids before hiring them for this purpose. “It may be risky to leave young children or elderly folk with a domestic maid who is not specifically trained to care for them. Indonesian authorities were not happy about Malaysians hiring their domestic workers to care for children and the elderly because the maids are trained to perform household chores such as cooking and cleaning.

Employers hope that the new fees would improve the supply of maids but with Papa already having given notice that families with young children and elderly people would stand better chances of employing them, a mad scramble seems likely for the limited number of maids.

IT architect Shamini Prithivi Raj is among those lamenting the high cost of employing a full-time domestic worker. She said she was now paying RM700 each month to send her child to a day care centre. “After my baby-sitter moved, I tried to hire a maid but the fee was just too expensive,” she said, adding that she had been told by several agencies that it would cost between RM8,000 and RM10,000.

Shamini said that she would rather to go directly to the source country and get a worker without the help of middlemen. “I have seen too many people get cheated by agencies and syndicates,” she said.

* In a year there are 2 fasting months for Muslim. During the fasting months, you should expect performance to decrease because the work they are doing requires energy.If they have no food during the day, they won’t have enough energy to work, so this is the down side.

Before hiring an Indonesia maid, as an employer, it is better to ask your FDW and get her to write a remark in her contract about fasting. Some maid agencies have informed Indo FDWs what some non-Muslim employers required, a person with enough energy to deliver her chores or child minding. Some Indo FDWs are really OK to work without fasting in order to be employed.

When Indonesian maids did not fast for 2 years, understand they have to pay back when they go home. If they don’t fast for 2 years, it means that they have to pay back 4 months of fasting and that is really hard. In order not to suffer from it, they would prefer to fast so even if they promise not to fast so as to secure a juicy job, when the time comes or they felt the pressure from other Indo, they will request for it and it is hard to say No if you want a happy FDW.

My ex-Indo was a Muslim but she has tested pork, even though she knew she was eating pork. One instance, the package labelled it was pork but she happily ate it, commented it tasted delicious, claimed she didn’t know that was pork. Another incident, she was informed I’ve cooked pork porridge yet she was caught enjoying it. When I asked why she’s not taking her plain porridge, she claimed didn’t know and put on an act by dashing to spit out her food, including digging her throat to vomit. That bowl was meant for my girl, she wasted my porridge!

* Some of them do not want to touch or cook pork. If you are a non-Muslim, this is abig problem.You basically can’t eat pork for 2 years if she is doing the cooking. Some can touch pork by wearing gloves but she can't taste your food. Your food maybe too bland or too salty if she didn't adhere to your seasoning guidelines. When you bring her out for dinner, you can only eat Halal food, non-Halal restaurants are no longer an acceptable option. Some modern Indo maids will sit in a non-halal restaurant if you order food that suits her, eg beef or chicken, as long as that dish contained no pork no lard.

* They do not use toilet paper to wipe after they pass motion or urine because they hand wash .... not spray. A common Muslim practice. You need to tell FDW to use toilet paper and wash her hands with soap thoroughly, after each toilet visit. When they first arrive, their basic hygiene level is very low and your family is at risk of exposure to a diarrhoea attack if they are preparing your meals.You need to tell her our culture ... your hygiene regime from A-Z, treat her like a newborn and teach her everything, no matter how simple or how common sense you assumed. Don't be surprised good hygiene is viewed as "you're making life difficult for her". Last year, my office toilet was spotted with faeces left on top of the sanitary bin. It happened for a few days till management has to take action to such dirty/unsightly habit. Some people have "unique culture" that irks you but they are unaware.

Also, some don't know how to use sanitary pad correctly. You need to teach her and also show her where to discard. How would you feel if your FDW throws her soiled pad in the kitchen waste basket, saying hello to you the moment you use the kitchen washing basin? Or she leave her soiled pad in the common toilet so that you - the employer help to clear or remind her?

* Their education level is lower. Some of them are so poor that they only have Primary 2 education.As their highest education level is secondary school, a lot of things you assume they know, they actually don’t. You need to give them tonnes of patience and tolerance. Break up your words in the simpliest form.

Due to low education level or the way they were brought up, it has affected their learning ability so they are mostly not fast learners.Your training with her has to start from the very basic, treat her like a newborn, be very detailed and give her constant reminders. It will take about 2 years to get fresh maid up to standard and by the time her performance is up to standard, it is probably the end of her service contract and she is due to find a better employer or go home.That is why Hong Kong employers love to hire ex-Singapore maids because we trained them up to standard and these ex-Sin maids are hassle free to them.To think they could employ an experience FDW but paying similar amount as Sg employers, really makes me boil. We paid salary and levy (S$450 + 170/265) which is more than what HK employers are paying for an experienced Domestic Helper, don't you find MOM not treating us equally well as FDWs?

* If you can speak Malay, the language barrier is lower. Since they received little education, you cannot expect them to understand simple English. She said ‘yes’ but most of the time, she doesn’t understand what you mean. Having a dictionary is good but you can't really translate a sentence by using a hardcopy dictionary. The real English meaning could be different.

Spore will be receiving our first batch of Cambodia maids (400 ex-Malaysia). Will they be better than Indo maids or Myanmese? Let's wait and see.

MOM unwilling to stop employers from being cheated by FDW or blackmailed by maid agency. All the policies are either pro-maid or pro-agency. Whatever we've paid, most of the time, your return is low or zero. One thing for sure, no matter what kind of bad maid you've employed, the agency fee, regardless you've paid $1000 or $1800, it is eaten!

It looks like our fault to hire FDWs. We are punished as Sg FDW's employers, who merely tried to get a helper in order for us to stay employable, as a middle income group.

What rights do we have as an employer towards our maid? None!
Aren't we human and should be given similiar human rights? Too bad, maids looked more like victims while you appeared like evil master of the universe. MOM or Media won't hesitate to publish your name if you had been accused by maid for ill-treating her.... they enjoy informing people there are more bad employers than bad maids.

Maids are contracted staff. Before they arrive to work for all the Singapore employers, they should fully understand that their job scope is to do house work and they should also be aware of the size and type of the house, looking after the elderly, what age the elderly is, looking after the baby, how old the baby is, if there are children, how many of them and of what age…etc. If they willingly accepted these terms and condition, then they sign and agree to come here to work. A lot of FDWs claimed they didn't know the FDW's jobscope and came here to discover all these, including maid loan.

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2 Apr - M was sent back to her agency after she worked exactly four months for me. Her agency found her a new employer so we are now completely unrelated . To train M, I took more than one week leave, burnt all by annual leave, so wasted! I'm only entitled to 14 days annual leave each year! Also, not forgetting the extra costs incurred due to M's negligence, hiring a FDW's babysitter to supervise her, non-refundable agency fee, 70% insurance fee gone to the drain, etc.M was a super slow person. A normal person, be it me or my current FDW, we used about 10 to 15mins to hang the wet laundry from the washing machine onto the bamboos to dry. M took more than half hour. A normal person need about 45mins to mop my floors but M took almost 2 hours. M can do housework at a slow pace, definitely can't handle children, doubt her agency at Katong Shopping Centre would be so honest to tell her new employer. I didn't blacklist M because there's outstanding maid loan. If she has no loan, I would buy her a single trip ticket home. The cost is almost the same as what agency is charging me for her lodging at their boarding house, $20/day, excluding levy. By repatriating her, my liabilities end the moment she steps into Changi airport departure hall.To change clothes, M took about 10mins while we, normal person only need less than 5 mins.... this is the difference between a fast person and a person programmed to be slow (cannot change the settings). Many people told me Indonesians do things very slowly, ya, I had a taste of it. From M's employment, I realised being able to communicate in English is important, Indonesians and Myanmars are pte limited so I have to drop down to baby language or sign language which means I can't sms any instructions nor call to talk over the phone.... they can't catch or understand what I want. When you raise your voice to explain, people around you may find you irritating or label you as a bad boss.

I think in Spore, out of 30 FDWs, only one is ok and will put her heart to work well instead of play hard. This means the other 29 employers are having bad times, tolerating their FDWs. This is not a good sign but MOM doesn't care, what can we do? Once you've signed the agency papers, MOM assumed you have willingly agreed to be their ATM machine cum FDWs' guardian. MOM and our PAP felt most employers have been given better options, such as childcare centres, babysitters, thus, employing FDW is certainly not a bad or no choice option.

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16 Dec - Employing Indonesian FDW was not in my list. I had to employ my current FDW because she said she's willing to work for me, accept no using her mobile phone during working days and will agree to my house rules. Hiring an Indonesian is the most expensive among all nationalities.

When M was interviewed in my house as well as in Maid Asia agency (Katong Branch), there is one thing that bothered me. I wanted to know why she was transferring, expecting her to give me one of the standard answers but she didn't. I was uneasy when she started to talk about something that sounded rather irrelevant to my question. When I looked at her agent, her agent spoke to her in Malay but we still didn't hear her reason. The agent's reason and M's was different. After she was employed by me, she claimed her employer was very good to her, treated her well and gave her money (actually those were her no off day allowance) so she really doesn't know why her employer asked her to leave. When I saw M the first time, she was crying bitterly because she has just been returned to the agency. Hubby must have felt she looked pathetic, that's why was willing to invite her to our house for interview.

Two weeks ago, M asked when she can buy and use her mobile. I said she can buy if she has money but can only use on off days or certain time with prior permission. She wanted to use mobile in the night, after 'work' to go online such as Facebook. I said she will not have enough rest and one of my house rules was no using her own mobile phone during working days. Her agency has mentioned this before I made payment. Felt somehow cheated.

Yesterday, I took my girl and her out for lunch at NEX. My girl is suppose to wear her spec but sometimes I let her wear glasses, not daily for fear that she'll throw or destroy it. She destroyed her first spec. I have reminded M to be observant, focus on my girl, especially when we're outside... that Mickey mouse logo spectacles cost about S$400. It was a gift from somebody.

I know M's ex-employer didn't bring her out shopping so she's fascinated by the beautiful malls and things to see. Note: I am ok to give FDW off days as long as she behaves like a responsible and decent FDW.

M has been repeatedly reminded to take care of my girl independantly, work without reminders, know how to keep my girl safe and always open her eyes to see and observe. I'm a full-time working woman, M can't rely on me to remind, she must learn to be independant. Pretend that I'm not around so that she can learn to be independant.

Gave M a notebook to write down what she forgot everyday and her mistakes. I instructed her to write down she didn't watch my girl closely, thus, her spectacles was lost. She refused to write, she cried, accused me for being too demanding, no good, often get angry, she doesn't know why I've to be angry with her and force her write. She said 'mam so bad', just like what my ex-maid J told her.

I realised M's English is private limited. Need lots of explanation, break up into the most simpliest form of English. For her benefit, I went online to translate the house rules and daily schedule into Bahasa but she seemed like doesn't understand. Claimed it is Malay, not Bahasa.

Realised M is very frustrated that I'm making her write. When I reminded her something she forgot, she'll say, 'I no forget, I do'. I said it is already 10pm, very late, should be bed time. Tasks she has been doing almost daily, she can still forget... absent minded. As an employer, I feel that all FDWs should be productive and try to get at least 8 to 9 hours rest each day. I really don't want to make FDW overwork and kept yawning or drinking coffee to stay awake. I can wake up earlier than my FDW and sleep later than her, so does my hubby but I don't feel good to see FDW hits her slow button and drags time to clear her tasks till 10pm. M is aware as soon as her chores are cleared, she can rest. Don't know what J told M. J is another person who likes to do things slowly. When I told J to sleep earlier, no need to wake up so early, she said she's used to it. Ok, I said 'up to you'.

Asked her, does it mean she has to lie down in bed then I can walk around find out what she hasn't done and dig her out of bed to complete? She kept quiet. When I asked her again, she said I no forget, I do later.... so I told her in order to make her feel that she really did forget, I've no choice but to wake her and tell her what she has forgotten and get her to do the forgotten things. She ignored me and walked off.

I wanted my FDW to rest early but she doesn't appreciate. Nag at her, she's angry. When I nag or remind M, I have a loud voice. What to do? How to control my temper when she kept repeating the same mistake? Lower my expectation or pretend I didn't see? No way.

Some usual tasks that M forgot:
- shower my girl but didn't pre-heat the heater (my heater is tank type, has to pre-heat otherwise, water will be cold).
- shower my girl but didn't bring clothes, could be missing top or pants. She made my big girl walk naked. It is my house but people can see my girl throught the windows. I saw a chee-ko-pek so decided to use curtains.
- after dinner, didn't use soap to clean my girl's chair. Can see food particles. My house gets more and more ants and cockroaches.
- straw didn't wash properly. Under light, can see black dots.
- my girl can't spit out toothpaste. She can spit for fun to irritate others but not at the right time, like tooth brushing time. Told M don't put too much toothpaste because most of the time, my girl swallows.
- feed my girl medicine or water, she doesn't use a hand towel to catch drips. When water drips on the water, she didn't clean. When you tell her, she asked where. It is dangerous, my girl could slip.
- told M to standby cover. I will cover my veg to simmer for about 2 mins. She is usually dashing to find a cover.

Another incident to show how forgetful or absent-minded, she was the one who took the wet umbrella to dry, yet asked me where is it. She likes somebody to constantly remind her, treat her like a big baby? Giving reminders make me unhappy. Same to her. I hope I can keep my mouth shut, don't need to raise my voice, spend more time with my girl and not her!

M dried the laundry half way, then conveniently left the damp shirt somewhere and when I asked what's that shirt for, she said don't know. I have CCTV. This is a must have for employers who have to rely on FDWs and left their kids alone with FDWs. It is the best evidence, no need to argue.

My Indo FDW doesn't feel she's in the wrong. Whatever I did, she just felt I'm trying to make her unhappy, too demanding, too hard to please, simple a bad employer. She said her ex-employer was very nice to her. Asked her why she was kicked out after working 3 months, said don't know. Quite often many little grievances not attended to build up imperceptibly over time and then all it takes a tiny irritation to trigger off a split. We all know about the last straw that broke a camel's back. I think her ex-employer is a nice person who just bottled everything. M might have assumed her employer was willing to accept her imperfect. M didn't expect a nice lady who never raised her voice to fire her without offering her an explanation. I'm the kind who will voice out, hoping FDW would change, adopt my methods and learn to be my capable helper.

M doesn't apologize, doesn't say sorry, felt she didn't make any mistake even though I've explained. When I gave instruction, she says 'umm', not yes nor ok. When she didn't catch my instruction, she either said 'what mam' or she twitches her eyebrows and eyes, with a ?? expression.... she does this everyday... kind of irritating. I prefer she says ok. Best is to repeat what I've said so that I know she heard and understand my instructions clearly. Too bad, she dislikes to be parrot.

31 comments:

if you think this maid have been giving problem, i advise you send her back home and blacklist her with MOM by log into it website...I am sure we all spent alot of money to hire them and need not to put up to their bad behavious for too long...otherwise they will never appreciate our kindness and take us for granted. especially now our government's new employment act only protect the maids interest but not us as employer. all these maid knew that why they behave like that to us....

You mean we can blacklist fdws? How do I do that? Have recently 2 rounds of terrible Fdws. 1 Indonesian whom we sent back after realizing that she was ill treating my stroke victim mother on camera. And another one that stole and ran ll of a sudden and came back expecting us to take her back!

To successfully blacklist a FDW, you need evidence such as CCTV footage, make police report based on injuries inflicted on your love ones or photos. As for stealing, FDW may have been caught red handed but activists or MOM can still choose not to believe you. I have uploaded a true account of an expat (in my blog) who called in the police and did a search, evidences were found in the FDW's room.

MOM will only do a blacklisting with proof, they do not believe employers' words, have a soft spot for FDWs. Once you get hold of any evidence, submit to MOM together with your FDW's work permit number.

As employers, we blacklist FDWs who may create miseries to another employer. Some couldn't blacklist their FDWs because they still have outstanding maid loan. If FDW is blacklisted (eg abused or ill-treated our loved ones) and repatriated home, employer will incur losses.... not all employers can afford to forgo their hard earned money. It is the MOM system that is unfavourable and preventing employers from telling the truth. Not our fault, ended up with bad or poor quality maids, we bear all the consequences, govt/PAP doesn't care!

Firstly, you should STOP obsessing over your daughter and learn to make your kid more responsible or take accountability of her. You're english isn't very good yourself, and you still dare to complain about the maid's. I dont mean to make this a personal attack but I really think that employers in Singapore shouls have a heart - You cant expect the maid to take on your responsibilities as a mother and yes, it was really, simply put, evil of you to make her write all her mistakes. It's not like you never forget things and youre so flawless yourself. Please learn to treat others with dignity as you would want them do to you.

Nobody is flawless. The correct mentality is learn from your mistakes and not expect your employer to accept and make your mistakes as something 'should be'. You're employed to work in Spore so you work and deliver your duties as per your contract. This applies to any employee in Spore, if you can't deliver, the company can terminate your services, company is not obliged to support your flaws.

If maids are so special, allowed to continue make mistakes after given constant reminders/training, no need to learn from her mistakes, why come to Spore? Don't understand why MOM allow lousy FDWs to sponge on employers!! We paid for FDWs' services, they are not here to work for free, we paid them what they deserved by Sg law, provided live-in expenses, don't owe them anything, what's wrong with expecting a FDW to behave and work like a responsible human being?

My English is no good doesn't mean my company has to drop its standard, allow me to use this as an excuse for being unable to perform well. They are not a charity organisation, same for FDW employer's point of view, we don't run a charity home. As a responsible employee, it is my duty to meet the company's requirement if I want and in need of that job!!

I didn't delete your post so that others can see your insensitive comments. This is my blog, I have the rights to upload what FDW made me go thru. I want people to know of poor maid quality and incorrigible FDW who thought dignity and respect is meant for her, not the employers!!

Mistakes are mistakes, you can't deny so why can't blog owner tell others what her maids did to her? Maids are too pampered and want to be spared from scrutiny?

So what if blog owner has bad English, her English is still better then maid. She didn't make her maid to be the mother, did she? I thought all the while FDWs are just maids, drawing a salary. When was maid empowered to be the children's mother?

You mean "your English" - ah, you are one of those princess Indo maids aren't you?

Winter has a child with special needs - who requires a careful attentive guardian because the child can't verbally communicate need or avoid hazards on her own - accepting a post at her house is therefore accepting the /responsibility/ to diligently care for that child. Maids who couldn't do that shouldn't have sign. Want to be police officer? Be ready to risk your life on duty - can't argue you have a right to run away. Want to be ship's captain? Be ready to stay on ship until passengers are rescued - can't argue you have as much right to run as those you have agree to be responsible for.

Nursing makes good money where I am - but I know I would burn-out within weeks so I don't sign up to be a nurse. I have a friend who is studying to be a nurse - she started her studies only after she has worked after sick people as an orderly and has volunteer enough to know she can handle it.

For money or no money, you can't offer to help a blind man across the road and then abandon him in the middle of it!

English is my second language and it was a long while before I became as proficient in it as I am now - perfect English isn't needed to do a job with English speakers - but your English should at least be /comprehensible/ enough first before you agree to a job where communication is so necessary. M should have waited for an ex-pat with fat enough pocket and enough time to baby her instead of wasting someone's annual leave - or M should have applied for other foreign work, like factory.

It disgust me to see how irresponsible some people can be, especially when they've been pampered, living expenses already covered, and salary on top.

I did hourly work at a festival last summer - I was with these teenage boys who slacked, horsed around, broke and appropriated company things, and took more than the offered daily free meal and left food half-eaten. Unofficially the boss actually doesn't mind more than one meal if work was long and no food was wasted - but it was wasted and left littered around the trailers where the boss have to sleep (carnies). At first there was no monitoring at all, and there was chairs for everyone, but they manage to be soooo slow, that finally half of them was sent home and a regular employee has to be wasted to supervise them.

The teenagers couldn't understand why I was working so hard: I said, well, for starters, why should boss hire me if I can't make for boss more than what boss paid on me? That be wages, daily meal(s0, AND entrance pass to the festival (which I loved). Doing my /job/ is the decent thing to do and it'll earn me better treatment and an updated good reference. Teenagers are short sighted and reason if they stretch out the work by being lazy (they were literally sitting around doing nothing whenever boss was absent), then they'll have more paid hours - enough to not work after the summer! Well, they got fired, won't be rehired the following summer (there goes paid fun), while I got a much higher hourly wage than originally agreed on! I didn't even tell on them, I just did my job.

You never employed a maid before. Do not comment. I too experienced such maids and would says get rid of the maid is good but still need help to look after children. We hope maids listens and understands our instruction. Not forgetting simple task that is done routinely.

Pls. You obviously are here just to attack the writer. If you have read her blog carefully, you would realise her daughter is a special needs child, that means she is likely unable to be responsible for herself even if she is 20 years old. And Writer needs to work so she can earn money to support her child else she does not need a maid.

And Writer has obviously state that maid refuses to improve that is why she has to come up with all those things.

Talk about evil. In primary school, when we had spelling mistakes, we were made to write pages to make us remember. There is nothing wrong with that. Practice makes perfect. Do you understand.

I think you are the evil one, to just come in and "talk" like this to a person who have to pay a salary to a silly unteachable maid and suffer.

In future, by your standards, all companies should expect lazy unteachable staff.

I've recently sent email to mom with regareds to my bad maid NameTinahHerlina BT Warjo WarjuNationality indonesianDate of Birth 1983-07-02 (age: 29 yrs)Place of BirthBrebes, IndonesiaHeight/Weight157 cm / 57 kgReligionMuslimWe sent her back in may 2013. Very dishonest.lied about everything juz want u to feel sad n sorry for her.she once fainted coz she said she saw ghost in our kitchen!!! She always felt sick n got tired most of the time.she also secertly own a hp.these are juz some of the creappy things she did...the worst ever was we caught her having affair with bangla workers!! We hv also email to mom not recommanding her to work ss maid here in sg..but juz incase she slip do avoid her..

Singaporeans need to go back to their hearts and search a respect for all humanity, not just understand issues from the perspective of a wealthy and developed nation, but to also understand the level of poverty that many less developed nations faced.

Only when we are able to show understanding to the challenges of our less developed neighbours and their fellow citizens, then can we truly call ourselves a matured and respectable nation.

It is not our expensive spectacles or smartphones that define our respect as a people, it is the understanding we can give, the things we can share, and certainly the things that we can endure.

To highlight some of the difficulties they faced: daughters were sold in order that families can continue to plant the Jasmine rice that eventually are exported to us; in more remote villages, some people can access to taste only one tiny piece of chicken a year, on Hari Raya Day; and I can safely say none of the housemaids in Singapore grew up on formula milk, the best meal their families can afford since baby was squashed banana and porridge; many would not have worn any shoes even when they go to school.

The society that we grew up are world's apart, the least we Singaporeans can do is give them the modicum of patience and understanding.

This is the reason why employers are faced with so many pampered or princess-attitude maids. FDWs have been wrongly lead to think they deserved to be treated better than their employers, use our money as if it is theirs. It is NOT employer's duty to indulge or give FDWs what they craved for.

Maids didn't get a good life in their own countries so who's fault? Obviously their own govt! Otherwise, blame your parents who didn't give birth to you with a golden spoon. What has it got to do with us, Sporeans, merely employer of one FDW, not the boss of a company, organisation or VWO?

AGREE "This is not a form of respect for all humanity. You are taking advantage of us! We are employers, not your financial institute or charity organisation."

Above said "the daughters were SOLD in order that families can continue to plant the Jasmine rice that eventually are exported to us"Which FDW was sold to Spore?Where to buy a slave who cannot misbehave? I am interested.

How come MOM didn't tell us there's slavery in Spore, we hired maid = we own them? If there's slavery, means I CAN make her work very hard, cane/starve/punish her if she disobeys my instructions/show no respect to me, no need to give her off days as per MOM, no need to care about NGOs (human rights), etc?

We had an indonesian maid who worked for us for 14yrs. She went back recently due to an emergency call from home. She promised to call back once she arrived but she never did. As we were worried for her well being,we tried calling her many times but unable get her. After many attemps we managed to get her on the phone and she gave execuses that her father is dead and she is unable to come back for the meantime. So, I told her to take a month off and she have to come back soon as her passport will be expiring soon otherwise she wouldn't be able to come in. She promised me that she will call me if she decided not to come back and she never did. Soon after that i called her sister and informed that if she don't call me that day i will have to made a police report as i am not going to be responsible for her well being and i need to get a replacement. Later that day she text me on my phone and says that she is very sorry and that she won't be able to work for me anymore.

We were very upset and dissapointed with her as we treated her like one of our family members and we take her along with us for every holidays and my kids are really closed to her. So hurt she played us out.

My name is Wind from Indonesia.I’m 38 years old.I have a 11 year old girl.I'm looking for a new employer in singaporeMy work experience;

1.Singapore for 8 years working for Mr. Tan T.HTake care of his daughter ( Tan Chee Koon since the age of 6 years)

2.Hong kong .. almost 10 yearsa.Chinesse Family (Mrs.Amy Chan / 2 years / take care Michelle 4 years old)b.British family (David Lewis Wickham / pass away of a heart attack, cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure)c.Chinesse family (take care Nelson and Irene (new Born Baby and kid)d.Canadian (Mr.D.James A.Horward & Joyce Horward / take care new born baby called Kaelin Rain Horward / Austis e.Finish(Finland) family take care for kids 18 months and new born baby (Olavi gabriel(olie) and Tapani(Tapi Patrick)..

Trying to find a job for the future of my daughter who wants to be a doctor. I'm a hard working and trustworthy..I can provide a letter from my employer ... (I've a good referncy letter or warm card from them to me).Would you kindly to give a chance work for you?

My mum's Indon maid is SGD400 and she has worked with my mum for over a year. So far so good.My fresh Indon maid is SGD450 but has not arrived yet. She is entitled to off days but my mum's maid is not. SGD450 - 500 for fresh Indon maid is a bit too much. When these 2 maids start comparing terms, employers will have unavoidable headaches.

A fresh Fillipino maid cost only US400 and can speak better English. My friend who just hired one told me about it when we recently met up.

Regarding the maid pay hike - I have emailed to respective ministries to find out what are consumer rights but no reply. Maybe some ppl think I am money pincher but what I feel is as businessman, you have every right to earn from consumers but it must be in an ethical manner. I also think there are many ppl like me who has signed up with agencies and wondering what they can help us do when there's a bad maid in the house.

Madam Nancy Gan Wan Geok is believed to have been killed by her 23-year-old Indonesian maid, Dewi Suko Wati. The 69-year-old was found in the swimming pool in her white and blue pajamas. She had head injuries and her left wrist was in a cast. She is believed to have been alone at home with her maid on the property, which is as big as about 20 four-room HDB flats and valued around $40 million.

The Straits Times understands that the maid, from Central Java, received her work permit on March 6, and had been working for Ms Gan for only about a week.

Another case of Indonesian maid-killer and found to be underaged! Maid lied about her age and when found she's only a teenager, maid can run away from severe legal actions.

Who to blame? The unlucky or ill-fated employer?The forever so caring and protective Ministry of Manpower? Always thinking of how to make Employers part with unreasonable money ... more responsibilities, unfair liabilities for low quality FDWs.The never in the losing end maid agencies? Encourage agencies to earn more easy money from employers but bear no risk at all?

Have you forgotten about a case which happened not too long ago whereby an underaged INDONESIAN maid killed a disabled girl? Is stress a valid reason to kill?Being young - underage ... lying means license to be free from punishment and make employer bear the losses and distress?http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/singaporeseen/this-urban-jungle/couple-sues-agency-over-underage-maid-who-killed-their-baby

The parents of the Indonesian maid who allegedly murdered her employer, socialite Nancy Gan Wan Geok, will be coming here to help with investigations. The court heard yesterday that the psychiatrist needs to interview the parents of 23-year-old Dewi Sukowati to complete the evaluation report.

Gan’s death was the second murder case involving a maid last month. On March 4, Than Than Win, a 24-year-old maid from Myanmar, was charged with the murder of an 85-year-old Singaporean woman at Springdale Condominium in Bukit Timah.

From ACE KINDRED CHEONG, published on 15 AprI read with disappointment and sadness that a foreign domestic worker has been charged with the murder of her employer.

Maid agencies in Singapore have a duty to ensure that all maids are physically and mentally fit, as well as trained, before they work here. Their ages should also be verified as there have been reports of maids who are younger than the age stated in their passport.

If not, more of such crimes would surely recur.

EMPLOYERS FELT MAID AGENCIES HAVE THE BASIC DUTY TO ENSURE MAIDS RECRUITED ARE SUITABLE FOR EMPLOYMENT IN SPORE BUT APPEARED LIKE THEIR JOB ARE MERELY TO EARN EASY MONEY WITH THE ‘EYES CLOSED LOGIC’ FROM MINISTRY OF MANPOWER (MOM felt welcoming foreigners is more important than our tears and welfare) … AGENCIES NO NEED TO DO BACKGROUND CHECK ON FDWs, NO NEED TO ENSURE MAIDS ARE PHYSICALLY & MENTALLY READY TO WORK AS MAID, ETC. RECENT YEARS, THE SALARY OF MAIDS ARE VERY HIGH, THEIR PERSONAL DEMANDS/NEEDS ARE HIGHER, NOT INCLUDING MAID'S LIVE-IN COSTS. OUR PRO-MAID MOM/HALIMAH DECIDED TO MAKE FDWs OFF DAYS MANDATORY WHICH MEANS SALARY ARE FURTHER INCREASED BUT QUALITY OF MAID BECAME LOWERED +JOB PERFORMANCE SLASHED! We're just like ATM machines, nobody care about the employers who are exploited or unfairly treated. Just because of the hat 'Employer', we have to absorb the losses and unfairness. Nobody cares to find out why we need a maid. No organisation or minister tried to tweak MOM policies for families who employed maids due to necessity (no better choice), not because we're rich or have money nowhere to spend.

This maid from Indonesia failed to return from home leave and we have cancelled her work permit.Name: Pratiwi Seran, Alias Nona.Work Permit No.: 0 07163139Period of employment: 11 Feb 14 to 2 Aug 14

I write with regard to the poor conduct of my FDW. Pratiwi was a "transfer maid" who had previously worked in Singapore. We employed her primarily to take care of my 2 young sons.

Pratiwi settled quickly into the job and the first few weeks of employment were uneventful. While her initial work performance was satisfactory, it quickly deteriorated after the first month, as she was increasingly distracted from her job. The following observations demonstrate flaws in her character that makes her unsuitable as a FDW.

Despite numerous reminders to only use her handphone at night, Pratiwi would use it incessantly through the day. Many times, she would hide in the kitchen or yard to use her phone, neglecting her work. At night, she would use her phone till late, often past midnight. She had even posted pictures of our children taken in our house on her Facebook account.

On many occasions, Pratiwi had disregarded safety by leaving the iron and baby food warmer on, and also allowing barley water to boil and spill over. She had left these unattended mostly because she was using her phone in a corner of the house.

Pratiwi often wore low cut blouses and short pants in the house, although we have repeatedly instructed her not to do so. Both my parents and us were uncomfortable with her attire, and this was made worse when she got herself large tattoos on her right chest and left thigh on one of her off days. We felt that these were inappropriate for our young children.

Several times, we had given her unofficial time off to allow her to run her errands like sending money home or buying toiletries. However, she seldom returned on the agreed times and would remain un-contactable for several hours.

On weekends, my wife and I usually wake up late. Knowing this, Pratiwi would sleep late as well, sometimes waking up after 8am. Occasionally, she wakes up at her usual time but she would use her phone until we were awake to begin work.

Due to her unsatisfactory performance, we have reprimanded Pratiwi several times. Unfortunately, she was defensive and provided numerous excuses, and did not demonstrate any attempt to correct her behavior. In addition, Pratiwi was disrespectful to my elderly parents, who oversee the care of my children when we were at work. She often ignored them when asked to perform simple tasks, and was sometimes blatantly rude to them.

We allowed Pratiwi to return to Indonesia for home leave when her grandfather allegedly passed away. We were wary that many FDWs use such tactics to discontinue employment, and turned down her request to borrow a large sum of money, and checked that our belongings were not missing before allowing her to leave. She did not return.

Pratiwi is ill-disciplined, poorly motivated, dishonest and ill-mannered. She is a poor choice for future employment and I hope this information can be made known to prospective employers.Muffin

I understand how you feel from all the posts I have read. I am going through a crisis staged by my Myanmarese maid. She is only 17 (admitted to me) has only 4 years of education (admitted to me) and told me her records were all falsified to avoid detection. She is bullet-proof.

To tell you the truth, my Myanmarese Maid & I have a good rapport. She behaved exactly as a 15 -year old and didn't had her period when she first came. She trusted me and told me all these things. I was kind to her and treated her like family as I don't have a daughter. I was more tolerant of her silly ways than I had with all my other mature maids I had in the past. I had a soft spot for her and I cannot explain why. Neither could my family members. I taught her English and I taught her songs she likes to sing in English. I bought her gifts whenever I went overseas.

To cut a long story short, she allowed herself to be used by other older Myanmarese nationals in Singapore and accused me of horrendous things when she is tired of Singapore and tired of household chores. She also accused my 12 year old son for whom she was engaged in the first place. My pain was that my poor child 12 years old only, one and only son, for whom the maid was employed to look after, was accused in HER POLICE REPORT drafted up by a Myanmarese woman she spoke to. My maid claimed she doesn't know what she has signed but just that she told the Myanmarese woman who works as a nurse in Singapore that she only wants to go home but have not yet finished her contract yet and that I won't allow her to go back. She doesn't want to work with another employer and misses her family. She told me she was naughty to come to Singapore following the promises of shopping, easy money, beautiful clothes, wonderful sight-seeing etc..But she didn't get it so after 8 months, she decided to leave. When she told me she will use her money to buy herself an airticket home, she threatens to run away. That's how she accused me of untruthful things through the help of Myanmarese adults.

This is what I did: 1. Lodge police report & Seek MP 5 June2. See MOM 5 June 20153. Wrote to Lim Swee Say 24 June4. Wrote to MOM licensing dept 26 June5. Contact as many MOM's dept as possible and submit all written evidences, report, etc

I was initially treated with the MOM's attitude that of "Employer must be wrong, the maid must be the poor thing" But I think IF WE EMPLOYERS WRITE, SUBMIT COMPLAINTS to MOM OFTEN ENOUGH, SEEK MP'S HELP, talk to newspapers, someone is bound to take notice.

You also need evidences. No one at MOM will listen to you if you have NO EVIDENCE. EMPLOYERS ARE GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT. THIS IS THE APPROACH.

Try to think like a detective. When your maid starts to behave funny, immediately without delay, think of ways to gather evidences. Hard evidences. YOu will never know when you might need it. NO ONE WILL CONVICT YOUR MAID evidence or not. BUT THEY WILL CONVICT YOU BASED ON MAIDS WORDS ONLY. Therefore, you need to do yourself a favour by gathering EVIDENCES to PROVE YOUR INNOCENCE.

Same situation as a woman will scream rape if she wants to get her boyfriend in trouble. Women always deemed to be the weaker defenceless sex and therefore should be telling the truth whereas men are traditionally the agressor and therefore likely to be the offender. Same goes for employers.

IF YOU ARE REALLY INNOCENT, YOU GOT TO STAND UP FOR YOURSELVES AND FIGHT A GOOD FIGHT. DON'T LET YOUR ACCUSERS GET AWAY, SINGAPOREANS. Don't let anyone (MOM, Agent, Maid, Activitists) push you around. It is a lonely fight. But WE ARE NOT SINGAPREANS FOR NOTHING, PEOPLE. I WON.

Agree. That's why when my current maid act/cry no money or we discussed about any terms (to her benefit) I requested her to write. I dont want to get shot so any wrongful/made up reasons.... I have to prove I had been a nice employer, didnt short change maid.In the eyes of MOM and activists, maids are very vulnerable.

This maid from Indonesia failed to return from home leave and we have cancelled her work permit.Name: SITI MAESAROHWork Permit No.:0 06625916Passport No.: AS 130496Period of employment: 29 AUG 14 - 06 AUG 15

Writing in to warn others not to hire the above-mentioned. She is literally lazy, love to act (especially when comes to menses) and constantly emotionally black mailed us for saying that her father/mother passed away.Has a total of 6 hiring records with MOM including us. (was blinded not check her status before hiring her)

Out of good will we agreed to send her home to see her mother at her death bed (make up story again, we supposed as the date of her departure she bought some chocolates and coffee mixes back to Indonesia) but she never returned back when we supposed to pick her up at the airport. Not too sure if this is so called the culture of INDON MAIDS where they just love to lie/act etc....

Now left with no maid and maid agencies are seriously blood suckers too. Each replacement will require some admin charges. (speechless) No choice but to make up our mind not to hire any maids for now or future!

We meant to be nice employers(providing work life balance) but something these maids take us for a ride.....

* They do not use toilet paper to wipe after they pass motion or urine, this is their culture. Spore Muslim practise this too. "

I am a Spore Muslim lady and wish to say that You are absolutely wrong on this.We muslim are taught on proper cleaning of using the water to clean ourself after urinating or passing of motion which is much cleaner as compared to just wiping it with toilet paper without washing.

So, whether some uses the toilet paper to dries themselves after washing or not is subjective and most Muslim Sporean that I know of DO wipe AFTER WASHING.

I understand your point indicating this relating to food preparation, so perhaps you could rephrase it to indicate on the importance of washing of hands after visit to the toilet and not how they clean themselves as I believe we Muslim who follow what we are taught has a better practice of hygiene by washing as compared to just wiping.

As for washing of hands after visiting the toilet, many even here in Spore do not even practice that and so that is what we need to teach our maid cos even if you just wipe after your visit to the toilet and not wash your hands after, is still very unhygienic and may have a risk of transmitting bacteria to your food.

You are wrong to use "Spore Muslim practise this too" unless you have valid research or survey done on this matter.

Do understand that I am not pro-maid or anti-maid but what you posted is on Spore Muslim and I wish to correct you on that as this blog is suppose to be of FDW and not religion.

For me, no more ex-SG maid! This super experience ex-SG Indo maid in the period of 2006-2013 have 5 employers! With only 1 employer which been able to work for 3.5 years reason being there are 6 adults and employer seems to give her a lot of freedom. Thereafter not sure why, she did not stay with this family and have a change of employer. The rest of the employers she only able to work around of 3.5 months, 5 months and 1 yr. We suspected she was pregnant in her 5th employment as she was married in Singapore with a Malaysian man. She came back after 1.5 yrs after delivery, work from Nov15 - Apr16, thereafter is with me. If the agency (Amore Employment Agency) did not hide her employment history, I definitely will not get her! We are a family of 3 with a 8 years old child, morning till 2pm, she is so free she cannot even bother to do a good job. She has more rest than us, eat also eat more than us, she is still not satisfied. BTW, she dresses very sexy too and even do re-bonding. Her main purpose to work in SG because of the Malaysian man still working in Singapore. Her attitude changed when he went back early this year back to Malaysia after losing his job. For this type of ex maid, it is easy for them to find another employer as they just look for those agency doing re-cycling of maid such as Amore Employment Agency or those operating in small shops.

She thinks she is very experienced, such that she does not like to be told what to do as she has her own way of doing things. She does not like to be monitored. A few months into working, she questioned me one day why do I have to lock up my room doors when her previous employers do not. She even question me why do I have so many cameras in the house. If anything missing can always report police or can search her bag before she is to go out on Sunday. If anything we cannot find and ask her, she will ask us to go see our recording. Then I showed her how she behaves when she thinks my camera have been switched off, she went snooping around my drawers and cupboards. I am using a XiaoYi cam and there is a blue indication light, I was thinking can the blue light be switched off and was happy it can be done. When the maid is sweeping the floor, she keeps trying to glance at the camera as she sees there is no blue light. Her reaction is hilarious once she finds the camera have not blue indication light thinking it is not recording.

I tried to be understanding and patience, review at her overall performance and have been giving her chance after chance. Work wise she is okay such as cleaning and working, is the work attitude and behaviour that is ridiculously demanding. Work attitude - do not like to be told, do not like to follow your way if she thinks her way is better and thinking a lot about her rights. Behaviour - she uses your things without asking, she thinks it is okay as she ever told me before her previous employer is okay with it. I told her different family operate differently, if previous employer so good, why change? When she breaks your thing, she will not tell you, when found out she just put on an angry look and refused to talk. She always like to say "Go call police lah, say this maid no good", then when I asked her is it she wants to transfer or go back home, she refuses to say anything. The last I can tolerate is she eats before we do!

The day I set to bring her to the airport, is the last day of her special pass as I have been searching high and low and reading what to do since this maid is so experienced. She seems to know what can be done and employer cannot do much. I am glad I do my diligent searching and have terminated her permit such that the day she leaves will be the last day of the special pass. A few days before the D day, she came to me asking for transfer, I told her no problem but I need to have a replacement first. Then the day itself she shouted at me that she cannot wait and want to leave immediately, ask me to send her to Batam. I told her no problem and asked her to bring her luggage out as I have seen her already pack up the night before. She told me I cannot check, I told her not true, MOM said I can check for items that belong to me. She told me she wants to call police, I told her to go ahead but I will make the call. When police arrived, she told the police I stole her tablet, can you believe it? The most ridiculous part is, she and the police the whole time on been conversing in Malay, a language I do not understand and whatever the maid said, the police did not translate to me except the part she accused me of stealing her tablet. She even asked the police to search my house and the police did. I heard bits and pieces such as Malay word for throw, so I suspected she told the police I have threw away her things. Am not sure is this a fair way of this police in handling maid's accusation. To quickly settle it, I volunteer to compensate to get her out of my place.

The night she is to depart, I have received a call from airline she refuses to board the plane. However, as there is no case, she had no choice but to do so the next day. I have since submitted my detail as referee. She is not serious to work here, it is just to enjoy her life. She does not mind changing many employers, as long as changing only twice a year will do.

According to MOM, if maid do not board the plane, it is still the employer's liability. For those employer encountering such a situation, do not panic, just get assistance from the CISCO guard to escort maid to board the plane which we need to pay for such service. This is as advised by MOM. They said it is very common, so for those maid who are reading this, don't think you don't board the plane means you have the winning hand. Employer can make your exit very grand by having you to be escorted up to your seat!

So the best we as employer should do, once find maid up to some pattern, do a good deed for future employers, immediately send them home and submit detail as referee. Even the MOM officer can tell me, they are ungrateful lot, no need to be so sympathetic.

Wow, guess I'm not the only one having nightmares with INDONS huh! 3 changes done and so i guess its about time i stop employin them. its indeed a waste of money since we ended up havin to help her. my mom is the one cookin. always cryin just coz she misses her HUB AND KIDS! reason to work in SG is coz she wanna see SG! how lucky can i be huh? brought along her husband's batik and clothin! it's somethin she cuddle every nite! funny isnt it! a SUPERB EATER but a dumbo with housework! kept on threatenin me to send her back to her agent, NATION AGENCY! AM I HARD UP?! NAH NAH since there are tons of others who are more sincere to work here! askin me to make video calls to her family. demanded i shld send money to her stupid kampong! am i her Admin ASsT? A SUPERB EATER TO BE HONEST! WILL CRY IF WE FEED HER NOODLES SIMPLY COZ SHE DOESNT LIKE NOODLES BUT PREFER RICE! IMAGINE! I HAVE TO FOLLOW HER LIKING!ITS ABT TIME MOM DO SOMETHIN TO PROTECT WE EMPLOYERS AND NOT GIVE TOO MUCH FACE TO FDWs! WE SUFFER MORE THAN THEM!PLEASE!!

Salary of a maid will vary from 500 to 800 SGD per month depending on experience, nationality and exact nature of work. Other monthly costs include MOM levy of 60 SGD per month if you qualify for the discount, insurance and the 6 monthly medical check up.

The agency fees will be very high, upwords of 1500 SGD in case of fresh hire, And would be 750–800 SGD in case of Transfer hire.

Plus you are also required to pay the air ticket of the maid to go home at the end of your term. You can transfer your maid and avoid paying this.

You can try sg.getdomestichelp.com for lowest agency fees as we work on a different business model. With Get Domestic help the effective “Agency fees” is just 300 SGD!!!.